AUA 2017: Best Abstract – The current management of prostate cancer in the United States: Data from the AQUA registry
AQUA now contains information on more than 2.5 million unique patients. From 2014-2016, 47,288 unique prostate cancer patients across 91 practices are included. Of these, 33,186 have localized disease and 19,040 have sufficient information to determine risk group. The median number of patients per site is 146 (range 1-3,483). Treatment by risk category demonstrates that 28.1% of patients with low risk prostate cancer are being managed with active surveillance or watchful waiting, while 32.1% and 24.8% are being treated with either radical prostatectomy or radiation therapy, respectively. In contrast, high risk patients are being treated with radical prostatectomy in 34.3%, radiation therapy in 30.8%, and androgen deprivation therapy in 23.4%. Furthermore, there is marked variation in treatment decisions by location of practice, even when all available variables are kept constant. For example, active surveillance for low risk prostate cancer ranges from less than 1% to 60%.
In conclusion, Dr. Cooperberg noted that treatment rates are variable and active surveillance rates are lower than in registries with a focus on this metric. He predicted that AQUA enrollment will rise rapidly and that validation studies are underway.
Presented By: IMehmet Toner, PhD; Massachusetts General Hospital
Written By: Benjamin T. Ristau, MD, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA
at the 2017 AUA Annual Meeting - May 12 - 16, 2017 – Boston, Massachusetts, USA