Upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) is an uncommon disease and its gold-standard treatment is radical nephroureterectomy (RNU). Distal ureterectomy (DU) might be an alternative for tumors of the distal ureter but its indications remain unclear. Here, we aimed to evaluate the oncological outcomes of DU for UTUC of the pelvic ureter. We performed a multicenter retrospective analysis of patients with UTUC who underwent DU. The primary endpoint was 5-year cancer-specific survival (CSS), followed by overall survival (OS), intravesical recurrence-free (IVR) and homolateral urinary tract recurrence-free (HUR) survivals as secondary endpoints. Univariate and multivariate Cox regressions were performed to assess factors associated with outcomes. 155 patients were included, 91% of which were high-risk. 5-year CSS was 84.4%, OS was 71.9%, IVR-free survival was 43.6% and HUR-free survival was 74.4%. Multifocality, high grade and tumor size were the most significant predictors of survival endpoints. Of note, neither hydronephrosis nor pre-operative diagnostic ureteroscopy/JJ stent were associated with any of the endpoints. Perioperative morbidity was minimal. In conclusion, DU stands as a possible alternative to RNU for UTUC of the pelvic ureter. Close monitoring is mandatory due to the high risk of recurrence in the remaining urinary tract.

PURPOSE: After radical nephroureterectomy (RNU) for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), prognosis is poor for high-risk patients. This study evaluated safety and efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (cisplatin or carboplatin + gemcitabine) in combination with durvalumab in these patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This phase II trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04617756 ) included patients with nonmetastatic, high-grade UTUC, on the basis of the ureteroscopic biopsy or urine cytology, and/or infiltrative aspect of the renal pelvis/ureteral wall by computed tomography imaging. Before RNU, patients received durvalumab plus gemcitabine/cisplatin (cohort 1) or durvalumab plus gemcitabine/carboplatin (cohort 2) once every 3 weeks for a total of four cycles (cohort choice on the basis of the glomerular filtration rate). The primary objective was the pathologic complete response (ypT0) rate in each cohort. RESULTS: Fifty patients were enrolled between 2021 and 2024 (31 in cohort 1; 19 in cohort 2). Median age was 68 years (range, 38-79), and 59% were men. Forty-five patients received four cycles of treatment, three patients three cycles, and one patient two cycles. Five patients switched to carboplatin during treatment. At surgery (N = 45 patients), rates of pT0 were 13% (4/29) in cohort 1 and 5% (1/19) in cohort 2. Fifty percent (15/29) of patients were pTa/pT1 in cohort 1, and 42% (8/19) in cohort 2. No severe immunotherapy-mediated toxicity was observed. Four patients had chemotherapy-related grade 3 neutropenia, one grade 4; one patient had grade 3 thrombopenia, one grade 4; and four patients had grade 3 anemia. CONCLUSION: Although our negative study did not meet its primary end point in either cohort, the combination of durvalumab and platin-based chemotherapy, especially cisplatin, showed promising results in terms of downstaging. The safety profile was good and the surgical risk was not increased.