Published online Jan 6, 2020. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i1.54
Peer-review started: October 19, 2019
First decision: November 11, 2019
Revised: December 9, 2019
Accepted: December 14, 2019
Article in press: December 14, 2019
Published online: January 6, 2020
Processing time: 79 Days and 13.8 Hours
Metastases to distant organs may significantly threaten quality of life and survival in men with prostate cancer (PCa). There is sufficient evidence to support that the incidence rates of newly diagnosed metastatic PCa have significantly increased, which is becoming a severe public health concern in the United States.
Bone is the most commonly involved organ in PCa, and substantial studies explore characteristics of PCa patients with liver metastases. However, due to the lower rate of occurrence of visceral metastases (VM), studies on those patients are relatively rare.
To identify the prognostic factors for overall survival (OS) in PCa patients with VM and evaluate the impact of site-specific and number-specific VM on OS.
The records of PCa patients with VM in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database, diagnosed between 2010 and 2015, were obtained. Cox regression analysis was used to identify the independent prognostic factors. Kaplan-Meier analyses and Log-rank tests were performed to analyze the differences among the groups.
Older age, higher stage, and higher Gleason score were found to be significant independent prognostic factors associated with a poor OS in PCa patients with lung metastases. Higher stage was noted to be the only independent risk factor affecting OS in PCa patients with brain metastases. Older age and higher Gleason score were associated with a shorter OS in PCa patients with liver metastases. PCa patients with isolated lung metastases exhibited significantly better survival outcomes compared with PCa patients with other single sites of VM. PCa patients with a single site of VM exhibited a superior OS compared with PCa patients with multiple sites of VM.
Our research identifies prognostic factors affecting OS in PCa patients with different site-specific VM. Patients with lung metastases or with a single site of VM have a better prognosis.
Special attention should be paid to those patients with poor factors. Clinical assessments of these crucial prognostic factors become necessary before establishing a treatment strategy for these patients with metastatic PCa. However, the type of accessible data through the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program is limited, and the relationship between other variables such as change of PSA levels during the course of the disease and survival need to be investigated.