The Prognostic Value of Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes After Radical Cystectomy for Bladder Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

We aimed to assess the prognostic value of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in patients with bladder cancer (BC) after radical cystectomy (RC).

We searched Pubmed, Web of Science and Scopus in April 2022 to identify studies assessing the prognostic value of TILs, including a subset of lymphocytes (eg, CD3, CD8, FOXP3), after RC. The endpoints were overall survival and recurrent free survival. Subgroup analyses were performed based on the evaluation method for TILs (ie, CD3, CD8, FOXP3, HE staining).

Overall, 9 studies comprising 1413 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis revealed that elevated expressions of TILs were significantly associated with favorable OS (pooled hazard ratio [HR]: 0.65, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.51-0.83) and RFS (pooled HR: 0.48, 95% CI: 0.35-0.64). In subgroup analyses, high CD8+ TILs were also associated with favorable OS (HR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.33-0.80) and RFS (pooled HR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.36-0.76). Among 3 studies comprising 146 patients, high intratumoral TILs were significantly associated with favorable OS (pooled HR: 0.34, 95% CI: 0.19-0.60).

TILs are useful prognostic markers in patients treated with RC for BC. Although the prognostic value of TILs is varied, depending on the subset and infiltration site, CD8+ TILs and intratumoral TILs are associated with oncologic outcomes. Further studies are warranted to explicate the predictive value of TILs on the response to perioperative systemic therapy to help clinical decision-making in patients with BC.

Clinical genitourinary cancer. 2024 Jan 17 [Epub ahead of print]

Tatsushi Kawada, Takafumi Yanagisawa, Pawel Rajwa, Reza Sari Motlagh, Hadi Mostafaei, Fahad Quhal, Ekaterina Laukhtina, Maximilian Pallauf, Frederik König, Benjamin Pradere, Motoo Araki, Yasutomo Nasu, Shahrokh F Shariat

Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kita-ku, Okayama, Japan., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, Medical University of Silesia, Zabrze, Poland., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Men's Health and Reproductive Health Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Daneshjoo Blvd, Tehran, Iran., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Research Center for Evidence Based Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, Paracelsus Medical University Salzburg, University Hospital Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Urology, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany., Department of Urology, La Croix Du Sud Hospital, Quint-Fonsegrives, France., Department of Urology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kita-ku, Okayama, Japan., Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Hourani Center for Applied Scientific Research, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Amman, Jordan; Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, Texas, USA; Department of Urology, Second Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prag, Czech Republic; Karl Landsteiner Institute of Urology and Andrology, Vienna, Austria; Research Center for Evidence Medicine, Urology Department Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. Electronic address: .