Heminder Kaur Sokhi MBBCh, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Arumugam Rajesh MBBS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Kevin Anthony Mulcahy MBBS, FRCR, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Michael J.G. Bankart BA, MSc, PhD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

To establish the incidence of distant metastases in patients with bladder cancer and to evaluate the role of staging whole-body CT scans for detecting distant metastases in patients presenting with bladder cancer.

One hundred consecutive patients with proven histological diagnosis of transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder over a 22 month period were included in the study. All these patients had an MRI scan of the bladder at initial presentation for local tumour staging. A staging CT scan of the thorax, abdomen and pelvis was performed at the same time to assess for the presence of distant metastases. All imaging was retrospectively reviewed.

There were 73 males and 27 females. The age range was 55 to 95 years. The final pathological staging revealed 25 patients with stage Ta disease, 30 patients with stage T1, 40 patients with stage T2 , 3 patients with stage T3b, and 2 patients with stage T4 disease. Five patients had distant metastases on staging CT scans and one was found to have an incidental primary lung tumour. Two were found to have lung metastases, one isolated para-aortic nodal metastases and one had liver, bone and nodal metastases. One had bone metastases that were better demonstrated on MRI and bone scan. Four out of the five patients had muscle invasive disease (T2) and one had T1 disease.  

The overall incidence of metastatic disease in our series was 5 %. However the incidence increased to 9% in the patients with muscle invasive disease. The incidence of metastatic disease in patients with superficial bladder cancer (Ta) was 0%. Staging CT scans to evaluate distant metastatic disease in patients with bladder cancer can be restricted to those with muscle invasive disease.  

Staging CT scans to evaluate distant metastatic disease in patients with bladder cancer can be restricted to those with muscle invasive disease.

Sokhi, H, Rajesh, A, Mulcahy, K, Bankart, M, Role of Whole Body Staging CT Scans for Detecting Distant Metastases in Patients with Bladder Cancer.  Radiological Society of North America 2008 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, February 18 - February 20, 2008 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2008/6016921.html