
The American Urological Association (AUA) has released a new amendment to their 2019 guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of early-stage testicular cancer.
Many patients with low-stage disease have high survival rates, and the priority for those patients is reducing the burden of therapy and treatment-related toxicity without compromising the efficacy of their cancer treatment.
The AUA reviewed new literature through their update literature review process and distributed it to peer reviewers of varying backgrounds.
The literature was then approved by the AUA Board of Directors and the Society of Urodynamics, Female Pelvic Medicine & Urogenital Reconstruction Executive Committee.
The guideline update includes:
- New studies and evidence to support the use of magnetic resonance imaging in the surveillance/staging of patients with germ cell tumors, and surveillance imaging in patients with stage I testicular cancer
- Retroperitoneal lymph node dissection as a new treatment option for patients with stage IIA or IIB seminoma with a lymph node ≤3cm
- Updates to include long-term follow-up for 2 cycles of etoposide and cisplatin chemotherapy without bleomycin for patients with nonseminoma germ cell tumors who have pathological stage II disease that is not pure teratoma
- Updated statement and expanded information on survivorship
“Surveillance has become more important than ever for those with testicular cancer,” Dr. Andrew Stephenson, director of urologic oncology at Rush University Medical Center, said. “Since the last testicular cancer guideline was released, the model for management has substantially changed, making an amendment like this critical to effectively treat and manage testicular cancer.”