Reappraisal of the role of radical radiotherapy and salvage cystectomy in the treatment of invasive (T2/T3) bladder cancer.

One hundred and eighty-two patients with invasive (T2/T3) bladder cancer were treated by radical radiotherapy at the London Hospital between 1974 and December 1985. Cystectomy was reserved for patients whose tumours either did not respond completely to radiation or recurred later, provided they were fit for surgery and had not developed distant metastases. The overall corrected 5-year survival rate was 40%; 75 patients responded to radiation and did not relapse during the period of follow-up; 20 patients had an initial response to radiation but subsequently relapsed, with a 5-year survival rate following relapse of 20%. Of these, 11 patients had a cystectomy with a 5-year survival following relapse of 36%, whereas all 9 patients who did not have a cystectomy died within 3 years; 87 patients who did not respond to radiation had a 5-year survival rate of 18%. Of these, 22 patients underwent salvage cystectomy with a 5-year survival of 47%, whereas the 65 patients who did not have a cystectomy had a 5-year survival of 3%. These results justify a policy of radical radiotherapy and salvage cystectomy rather than elective cystectomy in the treatment of invasive bladder cancer.