Health-related quality of life outcomes in adults with nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer receiving a mitomycin-containing reverse thermal gel as a primary treatment (Optima II: Phase 2b, single-arm, open-label trial).

Abstract

270 Background: The standard of care for low-grade non‐muscle‐invasive bladder cancer (LG NMIBC) is transurethral resection of the bladder tumor, which can worsen health‐related quality of life (HRQOL). The “OPTimized Instillation of Mitomycin for Bladder Cancer Treatment” (Optima II, clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03558503) is a Phase 2b, open label, single arm, multicenter trial evaluating a nonsurgical alternative as a primary treatment. Patients receive six weekly instillations of UGN-102, a mitomycin-containing reverse thermal gel with a sustained release time of up to 8 hours. We report on HRQOL changes between baseline and the primary endpoint of 3 months. Methods: A total of 63 patients enrolled in the Optima II trial at 20 sites in the U.S. and 2 sites in Israel between October 2018 and October 2020. Of the 63 patients enrolled, 44 were in the HRQOL cohort and completed a quarterly questionnaire. The QLQ-NMIBC24 has six subscales (urinary symptoms, malaise, future health worries, bloating and flatulence, sexual functioning, and male sexual problems) and five single items (intravesical treatment issues, sexual intimacy, worry about contaminating partner, sexual enjoyment, and female sexual problems) assessed with 24 items. Items were rescaled to 0-100 and reverse-coded so that higher scores indicate worse symptom burden. Longitudinal score changes were evaluated using the Sign test. We examined demographic and clinical characteristics associated with HRQOL change scores with regression modeling. A p-value of ≤0.01 was used. Results: The HRQOL cohort was 61% men, 57% age 65+, and 89% non-Hispanic White. Clinically, most LG NMIBC patients had multiple tumors (88%) with prior NMIBC episodes (77%), and two or more prior transurethral resection of bladder procedures (TURBT) (85%). Approximately half (55%) had their most recent TURBT surgery within 12 months of trial enrollment. No patients had missing HRQOL data at baseline or the primary end point of 3 months. The chemoablative reverse thermal gel used as a primary treatment did not cause decrements in patient-reported urinary symptoms, bloating/ flatulence, malaise, fever, general health, or future health worries. Sexual function mildly worsened between baseline and 3 months, and abated by 6 months. Demographic and clinical characteristics were not correlated with HRQOL change scores. By 3 months, 31/44 (70%) LG NMIBC patients achieved a complete response (negative endoscopic examination, cytology, and for-cause biopsy) and 0 experienced a recurrence. By 12 months, 8/44 (18%) patients had a recurrence. Conclusions: Adults with LG NMIBC in a Phase 2b trial who received a mitomycin-containing reverse thermal gel with sustained release maintained their HRQOL through 3 months. A Phase 3 trial is warranted. Clinical trial information: NCT03558503.

Hydrogel: a new material for intravesical drug delivery after bladder cancer surgery

“…A clinical study has shown the feasibility of hydrogel therapy, with 44 bladder cancer patients achieving complete disease remission within 3 months. 53 However, further observation is necessary to determine long-term outcomes.…”