Impact of bladder cancer family history on the prognosis of patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer treated with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG).

BACKGROUND

To evaluate the impact of having first-degree relatives (FDR) with bladder cancer (BC) among non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) patients treated with Bacillus Calmette - Guérin (BCG) on their oncological outcomes.

METHODS

The National Phase II BCG/Interferon (IFN) trial database from 125 sites in the U.S.A. (1999-2001) and multi-institutional databases from France (FR) and Lebanon (LB) (2000-2021) were queried for NMIBC patients treated with BCG. Cox regression models were used to evaluate the effect of BC family history on tumor recurrence and progression in their relatives.

RESULTS

There were 867 patients in the U.S.A. cohort and 1232 patients in the FR/LB cohort. Almost 8% of patients in both cohorts had FDR with BC. Patients in the FR/LB cohort were more likely to have carcinoma in situ tumors (CIS) (41% vs. 24%, p < 0.01). Having FDR with BC was not significantly associated with tumor recurrence or progression in the U.S.A. cohort. Conversely, on multivariable analysis FDR history was significantly associated with a 2.10 times increased risk of recurrence (p < 0.01) and a 3.01 times increased risk of progression (p < 0.01) in the FR/LB cohort.

CONCLUSION

A family history of BC could have an important impact on the response to BCG.