Hannah Clarke

Speakers at the 2024 American Urological Association (AUA) annual meeting highlighted the innovations and advancements that are pushing the field of urology forward.

Risk factors and prostate-specific antigen are both important when determining how to move forward with treatment, explained Angela Jia, MD, PhD, of University Hospitals and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

There are increasingly more bladder-sparing strategies for patients with even aggressive bladder cancer, said Alexander Kutikov, MD, FACS, chair, Department of Urology, Fox Chase Cancer Center.

With more therapies available in bladder, kidney, and prostate cancers, collaboration among health care providers can help ensure patients are getting the most appropriate care for their type and stage of cancer, said Mary Dunn, MSN, NP-C, OCN, RN, of University of North Carolina.

There are many options to try for patients if one therapy doesn’t work, but there are challenges around getting new treatments into the clinic, said Joshua Meeks, MD, PhD, of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Patients with small or slow-growing tumors or those with comorbidities that make them higher risk are likely better candidates for active surveillance, explained Yuzhi Wang, MD, of Henry Ford Health Vattikuti Urology Institute.

Evolving treatment for bladder cancer is going to require a multidisciplinary team to ensure patients are receiving optimal care, said Neal D. Shore, MD, FACS, medical director of the Carolina Urologic Research Center.