Differences in Tumor Characteristics and Prognosis in Newly Diagnosed Ta, T1 Urothelial Carcinoma of Bladder According to Patient Age

Objectives: To evaluate the differences in tumor characteristics and prognosis according to age at presentation in patients with newly diagnosed Stage Ta, T1 urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. Methods: From 1998 to 2002, 1587 patients with newly diagnosed nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer treated with transurethral resection were enrolled in this study. The median age was 63 years (range 21-98), and the median follow-up duration was 44 months (range 12-97). The study cohort was subdivided into 3 age groups: age <60 years (group 1, n = 614), age ≥60 but <70 years (group 2, n = 566), and age ≥70 years (group 3, n = 398). Results: Comparing the clinical and pathologic characteristics, the tumor size (χ² _trend = 4.01, P = .045), multiplicity (χ² _trend = 14.50, P < .001), T category (χ² _trend = 17.11, P < .001), and tumor grade (χ² _trend = 31.36, P < .001) tended to increase in the older age groups. The presence of carcinoma in situ and squamous differentiation, however, did not differ among the age groups (P > .05). The 5-year recurrence-free probability was 63.6%, 52.1%, and 43.9% for groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively (P < .001). The 5-year progression-free probability was 95.7%, 91.1%, and 84.2% for groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively (P < .001). Conclusions: Stage Ta, T1 bladder urothelial carcinoma in the younger patients tended to be smaller, have fewer lesions, be less invasive, and have a more favorable tumor grade at the initial presentation. Furthermore, younger patients appeared to have a more favorable prognosis than older patients.