Prognostic model using postoperative normalization of C-reactive protein levels in patients with upper tract urothelial carcinoma treated with radical nephroureterectomy

INTRODUCTION: To improve the prediction of outcomes in patients who will undergo radical nephroureterectomy (RNU) for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), we investigated the preoperative prognostic factors and developed a risk classification model. METHODS: A total of 144 patients who underwent RNU with history of neither neoadjuvant nor adjuvant chemotherapy between 2008 and 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Associations between perioperative/clinicopathologic factors and outcomes, including cancer-specific survival (CSS), were assessed. We specifically focused on preoperative serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and its postoperative normalization. RESULTS: Non-normalization of postoperative serum CRP level and pathologic T3 stage were identified as independent predictive factors of shorter CSS in univariate and multivariate analysis (p=0.0150 and 0.0037, hazard ratio: 3.628 and 4.470, respectively). We classified the patients into three groups using these factors and found that five-year CSS was 88%, 42.5%, and 0% in the low-risk group (zero factors), intermediate-risk group (one factor), and high -risk group (two factors), respectively (p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Non-normalization of postoperative serum CRP level and pathologic T stage were identified as independent postoperative prognostic factors in patients with UTUC who underwent RNU. These factors can stratify three prognostic groups and may help urologists in clinical decision-making for adjuvant therapy.