Fluorescence in situ hybridization assay detects upper urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma in patients with asymptomatic hematuria and negative urine cytology

Abstract

We evaluated the performance of a multiprobe FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridization) assay for noninvasive detection of upper urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma (UUT-TCC) in patients with asymptomatic hematuria and negative urine cytology. Voided urine samples from 285 patients with asymptomatic hematuria and negative urine cytology were prospectively analyzed by FISH technique. FISH assays were performed to detect chromosomal changes frequently associated with TCC, including aneuploidy of chromosomes 3, 7 and 17, and loss of the 9p21 locus. Eleven (3.9%) had a positive FISH result. Of the 11 patients, nine (81.8%) were found to have a TCC of the upper urinary tract, while no patients with negative FISH findings were found to have UUT-TCC. In this selected cohort, the sensitivity and specificity of FISH for the detection of UUT-TCC was 100% and 99.3%, respectively. Our preliminary data suggest that the clinical utility of FISH assay of chromosomes 3, 7, 9, and 17 as a noninvasive ancillary test for the diagnosis of UUT-TCC in a selected patient population with asymptomatic hematuria and negative urine cytology and by significant high sensitivity and specificity may be a reliable diagnostic approach for early detection of UUT-TCC patients. Further larger prospective and multicenter trials are needed to confirm our results.