Adjuvant chemotherapy improves overall survival in patients with localized upper tract urothelial carcinoma harboring pathologic vascular invasion: a propensity score-matched analysis of multi-institutional cohort

Objective Whether adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) for patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) offers survival benefit is still controversial. To explore the impact of AC on overall survival (OS) of cN0M0 UTUC patients, we conducted a propensity score-matched analysis using the regression model, including pathologic features such as lymphatic and vascular invasion. Methods A multi-institutional cohort of 413 UTUC patient record was used. Propensity score matching was performed to reduce bias by potential confounding factors for survival, including pathologic features from the specimen of radical nephroureterectomy (RNU), Results Ninety-eight patients were identified as pair-matched groups (49 patients in RNU and 49 patients in RNU + AC). Kaplan–Meier curves demonstrated that a 5-year OS rate of 72.7% for patients treated with RNU + AC was significantly higher than 51.6% for those treated with RNU ( p = 0.0156). On multivariate analysis, pathologic vascular invasion (HR 3.41, 95% CI 1.24–10.66, p = 0.0166) and administration of AC (HR 0.45, 95% CI 0.19–0.98, p = 0.0438) still remained as the significant predictors for OS. In patients with pathologic vascular invasion (51 of 98 patients), a significantly longer OS in RNU + AC groups was observed (median OS of 30 and 70 months in RNU and RNU + AC groups, respectively: p = 0.0432), whereas there was no significant difference in the OS between RNU (median OS: not reached) and RNU + AC (median OS: not reached) groups in patients without the invasion ( p = 0.4549). Conclusion The result indicates a significant benefit for OS by the administration of AC, and pathologic vascular invasion in the specimen of RNU could help the patient selection to better predict the effect of AC.