Gender-Specific Differences in Recurrence and Progression following Bacillus Calmette-Guérin Instillation for Non-Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer.

INTRODUCTION

To assess gender-specific differences in recurrence-free survival (RFS), progression-free survival (PFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and overall survival (OS) among patients with intermediate or high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) receiving BCG was the primary aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis.

METHODS

In July 2023, we performed a literature search using MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. This study was prospectively registered at PROSPERO (CRD 2023443269). The detailed review protocol is accessible via CRD.

RESULTS

The systematic literature search identified 6,723 studies, of which 38 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Random-effect meta-analysis for RFS, based on data from 24 studies, revealed no statistically significant gender-specific difference (HR comparing males to females = 0.9618, 95% CI: 0.8408-1.1003, p = 0.5707). Similarly, for PFS, incorporating data from 14 studies, no statistically significant difference (HR = 0.9540, 95% CI: 0.7709-1.1805, p = 0.6648), for CSS, analysis of data from three studies yielded no statistically significant difference (HR = 0.9228, 95% CI: 0.6196-1.3743, p = 0.6925), and for OS, based on data from two studies, no statistically significant difference was observed (HR = 1.1436, 95% CI: 0.5092-2.5684, p = 0.7452). The risk of bias assessment indicated an overall moderate to high risk of bias.

CONCLUSION

The findings indicate no association between gender and oncologic outcomes following BCG.