Upper tract CT urogram for the surveillance of high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer–are we over-screening patients?

The European Association of Urology (EAU) recommends annual upper tract imaging for high-risk (HR), non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). We evaluated the incidence of upper tract recurrence found during imaging surveillance for HR NMIBC and appraised our imaging strategy and patient radiation exposure. Two hundred and eighty-six patients between 2014 and 2019 with HR NMIBC (G3 tumour or T1 tumour or CIS, as per National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines), were included in the study. The total number of computed tomography (CT) scans performed, the average radiation dose administered and the incidence rate of upper tract disease for each patient were recorded and analysed using a Microsoft Excel database. The incidence rate of upper tract recurrence diagnosed during CT follow-up was 4/286 (1.4%). Three had a successful laparoscopic nephroureterectomy, the fourth was medically unfit for surgery. In total, 2.8% (8/286) were found to have other urological diagnoses. Patients received a CT scan on average every 13 months, with a mean radiation dose of 11.5 mSv. This study found that patients with HR NMIBC have a lower risk of upper tract recurrence than previously reported, which might support a guideline change to eliminate unnecessary radiation exposure during follow-up. Not applicable for this multi-centre audit