Ureteroscopy for the diagnosis of upper tract urothelial cancer: The outcome in a series with 275 patients in correlation with the final histopathology

Abstract

Background: There is still an unresolved debate about whether ureteroscopy (URS) and biopsy are required as a routine for the diagnosis of upper tract urothelial cancer (UTUC) or if these procedures can be omitted in appropriately selected patients. We aimed to report the overall diagnostic accuracy of URS biopsy for ureteral tumors in concordance with the final histopathology. Materials and Methods: We conducted this retrospective study from 2000 to 2019. Data on URS biopsies for ureteral tumors which included pathological diagnosis, staging, and grading were collected. These data were then compared to the results of contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and the final histopathological reports. Results: The data of 275 patients with a mean age of 59 ± 11 years were collected. Complete data regarding URS biopsies for ureteral tumors were available in 94 cases with an overall diagnostic accuracy in detecting malignancy of 93%. When matched to the final histopathology, the accuracy of URS biopsies increased as the tumor grade increased. Upgrading was noticed in 36% of the biopsies. Biopsy grade was an accurate predictor of stage. CT was performed in 270 cases with an overall accuracy of 96%. URS did not affect post-UTUC intravesical recurrence (P = 0.9) or overall survival (log rank = 0.08). Conclusion: URS biopsy for ureteral tumors was highly specific with fair predictive ability for tumor grade, and it could predict tumor stage. URS may not increase intravesical recurrence or affect overall survival. However, false-negative results were noted, which did not change the surgical plan when radical surgeries were decided based on CT.