Genitourinary System Cancer Research Articles

Examining the trend of mortality of genitourinary system cancers in Babol, North Iran (2013–2021)

BackgroundCancers of the genitourinary system, particularly prostate, bladder, and kidney cancer, exhibit a high prevalence. Consequently, predicting the morbidity and mortality of genitourinary cancers holds great significance for future planning and implementation. This study aimed to examine the crude and age-standardized rates of mortality and the trend of genitourinary cancers over nine years in northern Iran.MethodsThis cross-sectional study used data on the number of deaths attributed to genitourinary cancers recorded in Babol City between 2013 and 2021 through the cause of death registration and classification system. Population estimates were derived from the latest census reports. Subsequently, crude and age-standardized rates, as well as trends for genitourinary cancers, were calculated.ResultsA total of 307 deaths occurred, with an average age of 75.6 ± 14.3 years due to genitourinary cancers. The crude and age-standardized rates of genitourinary cancers increased from 2.7 and 1.9 per hundred thousand people in 2013 to 7.7 and 5.9 per hundred thousand people in 2021, respectively. Over the study period, death rates significantly rose for men (P < 0.001) and remained constant for women (P = 0.444). Examination of genitourinary cancers revealed an upward trend for bladder (P = 0.012) and prostate (P = 0.012) cancers, while a stable trend was observed for kidney (P = 0.070) and testicular (P = 0.139) cancers.ConclusionsThe age-standardized rate and trend of genitourinary cancers are rising. Consequently, this study emphasizes the importance of prevention through screening programs, raising awareness, and utilizing appropriate diagnostic methods.

The applications of CRISPR/Cas9 System for Urinary System Tumor.

Tumors of the urinary system include those in the urinary and reproductive systems, of which tumors of the prostate, bladder, and kidney have the highest incidence. In recent years, due to changes in dietary structure, prostate cancer has become the most common type of male genitourinary system cancer. Furthermore, due to tobacco consumption, increases in industrialization, and the age of the population, the incidence of bladder cancer in both males and females in both urban and rural areas, has shown an increasing trend. The incidence and mortality of kidney cancer have also increased and negatively affected the lives and health of all residents. While surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy have greatly improved the cure and survival rates of patients with urinary tumors, we lack methods for early detection and effective long-term treatment. New tools and methods for diagnosis and treatment are thus urgently needed. Recently, CRISPR/Cas9 has become an efficient method to alter the genome in many organisms. It can be used to activate or inhibit gene expression, which greatly facilitates the editing of targeted genes, both in vivo and in vitro. It provides a powerful scientific research tool to analyze the mechanisms of disease occurrence and development and to develop advanced targeted drug delivery. The diagnosis and treatment of human tumors will consequently be improved as this technology will surely accelerate cancer research. In this article, we discuss how CRISPR/Cas9 technology can be used to research and treat genitourinary system tumors will consequently be improved as this technology will surely accelerate cancer research. Here, we review the current applications of CRISPR/Cas9 technology for genitourinary system tumor research and therapy.

An Integrated Systematic Analysis and the Clinical Significance of Hepcidin in Common Malignancies of the Male Genitourinary System.

Tumors of the male genitourinary system are of great concern to the health of men worldwide. Although emerging experiment-based evidence indicates an association between hepcidin and such cancers, an integrated analysis is still lacking. For this reason, in this study, we determined the underlying oncogenic functions of hepcidin in common male genitourinary system tumors, including bladder urothelial carcinoma (BLCA), kidney chromophobe (KICH), kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), kidney renal papillary cell carcinoma (KIRP), prostate adenocarcinoma (PRAD), and testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT) according to the data from The Cancer Genome Atlas. We found that hepcidin was highly expressed in kidney and testicular cancers. Meanwhile, the expression level of hepcidin was distinctly associated with the prognosis and immune cell infiltration in male patients with certain genitourinary system cancers, especially in KIRC. Elevated hepcidin levels also present as a risk factor in male genitourinary system tumors. Moreover, enrichment analyses revealed that some of the principal associated signaling pathways involving hepcidin and its related genes are identified as tumorigenesis-related. Immunofluorescence staining confirmed the conclusion of our immune infiltration analysis in KIRC tissue. In this study, for the first time, we provided evidence for the oncogenic function of hepcidin in different types of male genitourinary system tumors.

Determination of the Factors Affecting the Frequency and of Chemotherapy- Induced Alopecia and Methods of Coping with Alopecia

Purpose: The aim of the study is to determine the prevalence of chemotherapy-induced alopecia and the patients’ coping methods with alopecia. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study was conducted with 240 patients who applied to chemotherapy unit of two private hospitals in Istanbul between December 2019 and January 2020. The data were collected using a patient information form developed by the researchers upon the literature review. Results: It was determined that 85.7% of the women experienced alopecia problem and the difference was significant according to their gender (p=0.00). 92.0% of patients with genitourinary system cancer and 88.5% of breast cancer patients experienced alopecia, the difference was statistically significant, and the significance was caused by experiencing alopecia more in these cancer types than the other cancer types (p=0.007). It was determined that 82.5% of the patients, who were receiving chemotherapy for less than a year, statistically significantly experienced alopecia more compared to the patients who were receiving chemotherapy for a longer period (p=0.031). It was also found that 69.7% of patients with Stage IV cancer experienced alopecia but they experienced alopecia statistically significantly less compared to the other stage patients (p=0.040). When the patients were examined in terms of diagnosis time according to family history of breast cancer, it was determined that 43.6% of those, who had family history of breast cancer, and 63.8% of those, who had no family history of breast cancer, were diagnosed in the stage II of their disease. The distribution of the cancer diagnosis time of patients according to having breast cancer history in the family was statistically significant (p=0.000). It was determined that 28.2% of the patients who had family history of breast cancer and 21.0% of the patients, who had no family history of breast cancer, noticed the lump for the first time in their regular self-breast examination. The distribution of duration of cancer diagnosis based on family history of breast cancer and the way of noticing the lump in the breast were statistically significant (p=0.000, p=0.014). It was also determined that 61.0% of the patients experiencing alopecia used a wig-bonnet (p=0.00) and there was no statistically significant difference between experiencing alopecia and age, marital status, occupation, place of residence, income status and social security. Conclusion: Alopecia was seen to be more common in women. Patients with genito-urinary system and breast cancer experienced alopecia more than other cancer patients. More than half of the women used bonnets and wigs. As the education level increased, women’s status of using bonnet and wig increased as well.

Characteristics of patients with active cancer and venous thromboembolic complications receiving a chemotherapy treatment cycle (according to the ‘real-life’ clinical practice of Publicly Funded Health Facility: Moscow City Oncology Hospital No. 62 of Moscow Healthcare Department)

Introduction . Pulmonary embolism (PE) accounts for about 10% in the mortality pattern among cancer patients, which is the second most frequent cause of death. Aim . To identify and characterize patients with active cancer and VTEC receiving chemotherapy (CT) based on the retrospective review of medical records provided by Moscow City Oncology Hospital No. 62 (MCOH No. 62) for the period from 01.2018 to 04.2020. Materials and methods . Medical records of 3,912 patients receiving chemotherapy treatment cycles in the departments of MCOH No. 62 were reviewed. 227 (5.8%) patients in whom the underlying disease course was complicated by VTEC were selected. Sites of primary tumours, n (%): stomach – 37 (16.3); colon and rectum – 36 (15.9); uterus, cervix, ovaries – 31 (13.7); lungs – 23 (10.1); kidneys, ureters and bladder, testicles – 19 (8.4); pancreas – 18 (7.9); soft tissues – 14 (6.2); mammary gland – 13 (5.7); lymphoma, myeloma – 8 (3.5); Ear Nose Throat (ENT) tumours – 7 (3); others – 21 (9.3). Results . The majority of patients (176 (77.5%)) had a sum Khorana score &lt;3, 51 (22.5%) patients had Khorana scores ≥ 3, which corresponds to a high thrombotic risk. 29 (12.7%) patients died. The hospital physicians assessed the causes of death as follows: 16 patients died from pulmonary embolism, of which 13 (81%) had a sum Khorana score &lt;3; 13 patients died due to progression of cancer. Conclusions . VTEC most commonly occurred in patients with gastrointestinal cancer (32.2%) and genito-urinary system cancer (22.1%). Half (54.5%) of VTEC occurred in the first 3 months of chemotherapy treatment. The Khorana scale is non-perfect in ‘real-life’ clinical practice (only 22.5% of patients with verified VTEC had a high thrombotic risk, and 81% of patients who died due to PE had a low and medium risk of VTEC).

Ferroptosis’s Role in Genitourinary System Cancer

A cell is the basic unit of life, and death is inevitable for any cell. However, cancer cells that deviate from the normal track can resist death and survive. Ferroptosis is recently discovered as a modulated cell death different from other known forms of cell death in morphology, biochemistry, and genetics. It is characterized by iron-dependent lipid peroxidation regulated by various metabolic pathways. The incidence and mortality of genitourinary system cancer have been increasing recently. Although clinical practice therapy techniques have improved, no plan with a positive prognosis has been identified. For the therapy of cancer, ferroptosis opens up new avenues. Many studies have shown a complex link between ferroptosis and cancer, while some studies have also found the role of ferroptosis in genitourinary system-related cancers and therapeutic prospects. This article reviews the ferroptosis research progress in genitourinary system cancers, including bladder cancer, prostate cancer, ovarian cancer, and cervical cancer. It will also provide new ideas for the treatment of these cancers.

COVID-19 infection in cancer patients: the effect of Hepatitis B immunization

Introduction: To investigate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of cancer patients with COVID-19 infections and evaluate the effect of hepatitis B immunization status on susceptibility to COVID-19 infection and mortality risk. Materials and methods: The records of 1,515 patients who presented to the Medical Oncology clinic between March 2020 and December 2020 were analysed retrospectively. The demographic and clinical characteristics and laboratory findings of cancer patients with (case group) and without (control group) COVID-19 infection were compared. Results: Of the 1,515 patients, 153 (10.1%) had been diagnosed with COVID-19, and the median age of cancer patients with COVID-19 infection was 53.9 (range; 18–82) years. The most common types of cancer were breast cancer (26.2%), gastrointestinal system cancers (22.3%), genitourinary-system cancers (16.5%) and lung cancer (15.5%). The presence of metastatic disease [hazard ratio (HR): 0.09, 95% CI (0.01–0.83), (p = 0.03)] and receipt of palliative chemotherapy in the cancer patients with COVID-19 infections [HR: 0.1, 95% CI (0.01–0.69), (p = 0.02)] were identified as prognostic factors in multivariate analysis as univariate analysis did not indicate palliative treatment as a prognostic factor. When the case group and control groups were compared in terms of hepatitis B immunization status (p = 0.24), no statistically significant difference was identified between the two groups. Furthermore, hepatitis B immunization status (p = 0.37) were not found to be associated with COVID-19-related mortality risk. Conclusion: Hepatitis B immunization status were not associated with the risk of COVID-19 transmission and mortality. The present study identified the presence of metastatic disease and palliative chemotherapy as negative and positive prognostic factors, respectively.

LncRNA DDX11-AS1 Promotes Bladder Cancer Occurrence Via Protecting LAMB3 from Downregulation by Sponging miR-2355-5p.

Background: As a subtype of human genitourinary system cancer, the morbidity of bladder cancer (BC) continues to rise. Because of the high potentiality of cell metastasis, the 5-year survival rate of BC is relatively low. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been verified by a large body of literature to engage in the tumorigenesis of a few cancers. DDX11-AS1 has been elucidated as a malignancy promoter in several cancers; therefore, its mysterious role in BC attracted our interest as being well worth investigating. Aim of the Study: The primary consideration of this article was to clarify the part that DDX11-AS1 plays in the progression of BC. Methods: The expression of DDX11-AS1 in BC was revealed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The biological functions of DDX11-AS1 in BC were evaluated through CCK-8 (Cell Counting Kit-8), EDU, TUNEL (TdT-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling), flow cytometry analysis, and Western Blot assays. Luciferase or RNA immunoprecipitation assay was used to investigate the interaction between miR-2355-5p and DDX11-AS1 (or LAMB3). Results: DDX11-AS1 manifested remarkably high level in BC and promoted the malignancy of BC. Moreover, miR-2355-5p was validated to be able to bind with DDX11-AS1 and inhibit cell proliferation in BC. Furthermore, our data suggested that LAMB3 expression was evidently upregulated in BC cells and inversely modulated by miR-2355-5p. Besides, LAMB3 may bind with miR-2355-5p. Ultimately, rescue assays indicated that the restrained development of BC in sh-DDX11-AS1#1-transfected cells could be restored by enforced expression of LAMB3. Conclusion: DDX11-AS1 facilitates the tumorigenesis of BC by the miR-2355-5p/LAMB3 axis.

Trends in the incidence rate of genitourinary system cancers in Turkey: 2004-2015.

To analyze age-standardized urological cancer incidence rates in Turkey during the last twelve years based on the available published data (2004-2015). Cancer data were obtained from the reports of Turkish Directorate of Public Health Cancer Department for 2004-2015. A trend analysis was conducted using the joinpoint regression analysis to observe the change in the trends over time. The average annual percentage of change, annual percent change, and the corresponding 95% confidence interval were calculated. Throughout the observed period, cancer incidence rates in men significantly increased by 3.04%, 4.70%, 4.03%, and 2.97% for all the genital organs, kidney, testis, and prostate, respectively. A significant increase of 3.11% and 1.91% was observed for the urinary system organs and bladder, respectively, of women during the same period. The increase in the incidence rate of urinary system cancers was more prominent than that of all cancers types in general. The total incidence rate of urinary system cancers (bladder and kidney) tends to increase more in women than in men. While there was no cancer with decreased incidence during the entire study period, similar decreases in some urogenital cancer types tended to occur during the second trend period.

Noninvasive circulating tumor cell and urine cellular XPC (rs2228001, A2815C) and XRCC1 (rs25487, G1196A) polymorphism detection as an effective screening panel for genitourinary system cancers.

BackgroundValid cancer screening and treatment monitoring are critical for cancer patients. Although genitourinary system cancers have a high recurrence rate, when diagnosed, patients undergo surgery promptly. We sought to explore sensitive and noninvasive screening and postoperative recurrence monitoring methods, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) or tumor susceptibility gene detection, to determine their appropriateness for genitourinary system cancers.MethodsWe adopted multiple detection methods. Enrichment-immunofluorescence in situ hybridization (SE-iFISH) was employed to detect CTCs from the peripheral blood of patients, and Agena Bioscience MassARRAY was used to detect single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in tumor susceptibility genes from urine cells.ResultsIn our research, CTCs showed a 76.92% positivity rate among 26 genitourinary system cancer patients, and the number of CTCs was consistent with the stage of cancer. In monitoring for bladder cancer (BC) recurrence, CTCs were more prevalent than urine cytology (66.67% vs. 41.67%). To our surprise, urine cellular XPC (rs2228001, A2815C) and XRCC1 (rs25487, G1196A) polymorphisms were specifically found in cancer patients but not in patients with inflammation or in healthy individuals. XPC polymorphism (rs2228001, A2815C) rates were 30.77%, 40%, and 50% in bladder cancer, renal carcinoma, and prostate cancer patients, respectively, and those for XRCC1 (rs25487, G1196A) were 3.85%, 20%, and 25%, respectively.ConclusionsAs a common biomarker, CTCs showed remarkable performance in cancer screening and monitoring. The noninvasive panel comprising CTCs and XPC (rs2228001, A2815C) and XRCC1 (rs25487, G1196A) polymorphisms showed high sensitivity (positive rate: 92.86%) and is suitable for genitourinary system cancer screening.

Abstract 3133: Leukocyte telomere length, cancer incidence and all-cause mortality among Chinese adults: Singapore Chinese health study

Abstract Background: Telomeres play a key role in the chromosomal maintenance and stability. To date, very few studies have investigated the association between leukocyte telomere length with cancer incidence and all-cause mortality, particularly among Asian population. Methods: Relative telomere lengths in genomic DNA from peripheral blood samples were quantified using a validated quantitative real-time PCR among 26,540 middle-aged or older Chinese adults. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of incident cancer and deaths by quintiles of telomere length were calculated using the Cox proportional hazards regression method with adjustment for potential confounders. Results: During 13.2 years of follow-up, 4,353 individuals developed cancer and 2,660 participants died of cancer. Participants with the longest telomeres had significantly 16% higher risk of developing cancer compared to those with the shortest telomeres after controlling for established risk factors (95% CI: 1.06, 1.28; Ptrend= 0.0003). We found similar pattern of results for lung adenocarcinoma (HRQ5 vs. Q1=2.89; 95% CI: 1.95, 4.27), pancreatic cancer (HRQ5 vs. Q1=2.36; 95% CI: 1.29, 4.32), kidney cancer (HRQ5 vs. Q1=3.23; 95% CI: 1.47, 7.53), and genitourinary system cancers including kidney, renal pelvis, ureter, and bladder (HRQ5 vs. Q1=1.56; 95% CI: 1.02, 2.39). In contrast, longer telomeres were associated with lower risk of overall death (HRQ5 vs. Q1=0.93; 95% CI: 0.86, 1.00), and deaths due to ischemic heart disease (HRQ5 vs. Q1=0.85; 95% CI: 0.70, 1.02), respiratory disease (HRQ5 vs. Q1=0.76; 95% CI: 0.64, 0.91), non-cancer (HRQ5 vs. Q1=0.80; 95%: 0.73, 0.88) and other diseases (HRQ5 vs. Q1=0.77; 95% CI: 0.63, 0.94). Conclusion: The findings of this cohort study support the hypothesis that longer telomere length may be a risk factor for cancer and cancer-related deaths, but might have opposing impact on overall survival. Funding Sources: National Institutes of Health (NIH) (R01 CA144034 and UM1 CA182876); NIH/NCI T32CA186873; National Medical Research Council, Singapore (NMRC/CSA/0055/2013); NIH (P20CA210300). Citation Format: Hamed Samavat, Hung N. Luu, Renwei Wang, Aizhen Jin, Woon-Puay Koh, Jian-Min Yuan. Leukocyte telomere length, cancer incidence and all-cause mortality among Chinese adults: Singapore Chinese health study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3133.

PCN109 - EVALUATION OF THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE COST OF PALLIATIVE CARE AT A UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL

The aim of the study is to determine the correlates of in-hospital costs for palliative care in a university hospital setting. This is a retrospective cost-of-illness study using data from the records of patients who were admitted to Katip Celebi University Hospital during December 2013- December 2015. Direct medical costs were calculated from the Social Security Institute perspective. Socio-demographic and clinical information was abstracted from patient files. A generalized linear model was used in the multivariate analysis to generate cost ratios(CR). The average exchange rate for USD/TL was 2.72 for year 2015. We included 374 in-patients in total in the study. Gastrointestinal system cancers were the most common cancer type (42.4%) followed by genitourinary system cancers (20.1%), central nervous system (16.4%), breast cancer (10,7%) respectively. Neurologic cancers (4746±3989 TL) and genitourinary system cancers (3968±3804 TL) had the highest costs. The largest proportion of the total cost was formed by medical interventions (55.8%), followed by medications (17.0%). Radiotherapy CR:1.67(95% CI: 1.19-2.34) and tramadol treatment CR:1.26(95%CI:1.01-1.59) were significant predictors of hospital costs. Palliative unit costs varied substantially, however majority of the variables could not predict the hospital cost of palliative care independently.

Merkel Cells and Merkel Cell Carcinoma of Genitourinary System Tumor with Aggressive Behavior and Poor Prognosis

Human Merkel cells (MCs) were first described by Friedrich S. Merkel in 1875 and named “Tastzellen” (touch cells). Merkel cells are primarily localized in the basal layer of the epidermis and concentrated in touch-sensitive areas. Their density varies among each anatomical site. Mostly they are concentrated in the palms of hands, predominantly in the finger pads, also in the soles and toes than in any other parts of the body. Concentration of MC in the external genitalia has not been studied, but some researchers detected some MCs in the male prepuce and in the female clitoris. Last year they were first described in the labia minora. Functionally they can be classified into some subpopulations with different functions: mechanoreceptive, endocrine, chemo sensitive. They belong to mechanoreceptors detecting tissue deformations and release various neurotransmitters to nerve endings. Tumor arising from Merkel cells called Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). This highly aggressive malignancy occurs most often in the elderly white peoples on the skin of the head, neck and extremities. Its incidence is generally higher in men than in women. The rate of mortality is higher than in patients with melanoma and prognosis is rather poor. MCC of the genitourinary system are very rare, aggressive and may be misinterpreted with other cancers of genitourinary system. Most cases of MCC reported in the English literature in the women are in the vulva. In general MCC have an aggresive behavior, but those in the vulva are virulent with a 100% rate of inguinal node and also distant metastases. Prognosis of this carcinoma is very poor than prognosis of the MCC arising in other parts of the body.

Up-regulation of miR-9 target CBX7 to regulate invasion ability of bladder transitional cell carcinoma.

BackgroundBladder urothelial carcinoma is the most common genitourinary system cancer in China. The objective of this study was to investigate whether the miR-9 can regulate the invasion ability of human bladder transitional cell carcinoma cells by down-regulation of CBX7.Material/MethodsThe expression of miR-9 was detected by quantitative real-time PCR in bladder transitional cell carcinomas (TCC) and normal bladder transitional cell (NBTC) samples. Bioinformatics software was used to predict some potential target genes of miR-9. T24 cells were transfected with pre-miR-9, and the CBX7 protein expression was detected by Western blot. Luciferase activities assay was selected to verify that CBX7 was a direct and specific gene of miR-9. T24 cells were transfected with pcDNA-CBX7, and the expression of CBX7 gene was detected. Then, the transwell assay was used to detect the invasion ability of T24 cells with CBX7 over-expression.ResultsThe expression of miR-9 increased significantly in human TCC specimens compared to that in NBTC specimens. TargetScan and PicTar software programs predicted CBX7 gene was a target gene of miR-9. The pre-miR-9 could up-regulate the miR-9 expression and down-regulate CBX7 protein expression. The luciferase activities assay verified that CBX7 gene was a direct and specific target gene of miR-9. The pcDNA-CBX7 transfection could up-regulate the CBX7 protein expression, and the invasion ability of T24 cells with CBX7 over-expression decreased significantly.ConclusionsAberrantly expressed miR-9 contributes to T24 cells invasion, partly through directly down-regulating CBX7 protein expression in TCC. This miRNA signature offers a new potential therapeutic target for TCC.

Risk of Cancer in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults with Autistic Disorder

To investigate whether individuals with autism have an increased risk for cancer relative to the general population. We enrolled patients with autistic disorder from the Taiwan National Health Insurance database in years 1997-2011. A total of 8438 patients diagnosed with autism were retrieved from the Registry for Catastrophic Illness Patients database. The diagnosis of cancers was also based on the certificate of catastrophic illness, which requires histological confirmation. The risk of cancer among the autism cohort was determined with a standardized incidence ratio (SIR). During the observation period, cancer occurred in 20 individuals with autism, which was significantly higher than a total number of expected cancers with a SIR estimate of 1.94 (95% CI 1.18-2.99). The number of cancer in males was greater than the expected number with a SIR of 1.95 (1.11-3.16), but no excess risk was found for females with a SIR of 1.91 (0.52-4.88). Cancer developed more than expected in individuals age 15-19 years with the SIR of 3.58 (1.44-7.38), but did not differ in other age range groups. The number of cancers of genitourinary system was significantly in excess of the expected number (SIR 4.15; 95% CI 1.13-10.65), and increased risk was found in ovarian cancer with SIR of 9.21 (1.12-33.29). Our study demonstrated that patients with autistic disorder have an increased risk of cancer.

MiR-96 regulates FOXO1-mediated cell apoptosis in bladder cancer

Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) is one of the most common types of malignancies and a leading cause of genitourinary system cancer mortality worldwide. The tumor suppressor gene FOXO1, a member of the forkhead box O (FOXO) subfamily of transcription factors, is downregulated in a number of cancers, including TCC; however, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. In the present study, we used microRNA (miRNA) target prediction algorithms to identify a conserved potential miR-96 binding site in the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) of FOXO1. Using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and northern blot analysis, we identified that miR-96 was downregulated in TCC tissues compared to normal bladder tissues (NB), suggesting that the loss of FOXO1 expression in TCC may be mediated by miR-96. To confirm this, we transfected pre-miR-96/anti-miR-96 into the T24 TCC cell line and revealed that miR-96 expression was sufficient to significantly reduce FOXO1 expression. Conversely, FOXO1 expression was not completely restored by the inhibition of miR-96 in T24 cells. Moreover, RNA silencing of FOXO1 significantly reduced miR-96 inhibitor-mediated T24 cell apoptosis. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that the miR-96 targeting of FOXO1 is upregulated in TCC; in addition, TCC tumorigenesis may be partly due to the ability of miR-96 to promote FOXO1 repression, thereby bypassing cell apoptosis controls.