Publications by authors named "Maruzzo M"

Introduction: Over the years, several prognostic models were developed in patients receiving chemotherapy for metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), while data on androgen-receptor signaling inhibitors (ARSI) in a real-world setting are limited.

Patients And Methods: We compared a consecutive series of 565 mCRPC patients receiving first-line ARSI at 4 high-volume Italian Centers (development set) to an external series of 180 patients receiving the same treatment at another Italian high-volume Center (training set), between 2011 and 2022. Sixteen clinical and baseline laboratory variables were selected to develop a prognostic model.

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  • The IMDC score is crucial for predicting outcomes and guiding treatment in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), especially when starting therapy with nivolumab.
  • A multicenter study analyzed 492 mRCC patients to see how changes in IMDC categories affected their overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) after starting nivolumab.
  • Results indicated that patients maintaining or improving their IMDC category had better survival outcomes compared to those whose condition worsened, highlighting the importance of IMDC monitoring in mRCC treatment.
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Rationale: Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer has a poor prognosis especially when harboring DNA damage repair gene mutations, nevertheless, in the case of pathogenic BRCA gene mutations, PARPi demonstrated a survival benefit and is a validated treatment. Nowadays, there is no data regarding unusual metastases after these drugs. Cutaneous metastases appear rarely in prostate cancer and were associated with a worse prognosis.

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  • The study evaluates the real-world effectiveness of the Pembrolizumab/Axitinib combination therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) in Italy, involving 170 patients treated between December 2020 and September 2023.
  • Most participants had clear-cell histology (83%), and the treatment showed a median progression-free survival (PFS) of 19.2 months, with 84.6% achieving disease control.
  • The study highlights key prognostic factors, including age and histology, that affect overall survival (OS) and establishes the combination's promise in clinical settings.
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  • More teenagers and young adults are getting certain cancers, like melanoma and breast cancer, and this has been happening more since the 1990s.
  • In Italy, the number of early-onset cancers in girls grew by 1.6% each year from 2008 to 2016.
  • Behaviors like smoking, drinking alcohol, being overweight, and not exercising are becoming more common among young people, especially girls, which might be causing this increase in cancer cases.
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Background/aim: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized the treatment of metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC). However, they could be associated with immune-related adverse events (irAEs), which may be clinically significant. Identifying clinical characteristics that may be associated with a higher risk of irAEs is of great importance.

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  • The study explores the safety and effectiveness of rogaratinib, an FGFR inhibitor, when paired with the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab for treating advanced urothelial cancer in patients unable to use cisplatin-based chemotherapy.
  • Conducted between May 2018 and July 2021 across 30 centers, the trial involved 37 patients with FGFR mRNA-positive tumors who received a combination treatment of rogaratinib and atezolizumab.
  • Results showed a 53.8% overall response rate at the recommended dose of rogaratinib, with common side effects including diarrhea and fatigue, while some severe adverse events were noted but unrelated to the treatment.
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  • The evolving oncology treatment landscape shows a need for better administration options that enhance patient experiences and healthcare efficiency.
  • A phase III trial (CheckMate 67T) compared subcutaneous nivolumab to intravenous nivolumab in patients with advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma, focusing on pharmacokinetics and objective response rates.
  • Results indicated that subcutaneous nivolumab was noninferior to the intravenous form, showing similar efficacy and safety profiles, with no new safety concerns emerging.
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Aim: To identify barriers between health and communication in oncology in order to promote the best possible practice. The areas of communication to be focused on are communication directly with the patient, communication within the scientific community, and communication with the media.

Material And Methods: A working group including eminent experts from the national mass media, healthcare system, and patients' advocacy has been established on behalf of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM), with the aim of developing suitable recommendations for the best communication in oncology.

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Introduction: Rare genitourinary tumors are lacking of randomized and observational data. We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with collecting duct carcinoma (CDC) through the Meet-URO 23/I-RARE database.

Materials And Methods: We performed a multicentric retrospective-prospective study within the Meet-URO network, enrolling patients from March 2021 (retrospectively up from 2011) until March 2023.

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Anemia, mean corpuscular volume and red cell distribution width may have some effects on survival outcomes of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) patients and are incorporated in a red blood cell (RBC)-based score. Its validity in prognostication of mRCC patients treated with second-line nivolumab was assessed. Retrospective analysis using Meet-URO-15 cohort of mRCC patients receiving nivolumab in the second-line setting or beyond.

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Background: Immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have significantly improved metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) prognosis, although their efficacy in patients with bone metastases (BMs) remains poorly understood. We investigated the prognostic role of natremia in pretreated RCC patients with BMs receiving immunotherapy.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective multicenter study included RCC patients with BMs receiving nivolumab as second-line therapy or beyond.

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Background: Although nivolumab prolongs overall survival (OS) in pretreated patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), underlining clinical and biological features of long-term responses are still to be determined. This study aims to investigate clinical and pathological characteristics of mRCC patients who achieved long-term responses during nivolumab treatment.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on mRCC patients receiving nivolumab as second or further therapy line between May 2016 and January 2019 in 34 Italian Oncology Centres.

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  • There are various first-line treatment options for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), with immuno-combination therapies being the standard for all patients, while TKI monotherapy is suitable for some individuals.
  • The REGAL study is a multi-center observational research project that will analyze both current and past systemic therapy data in mRCC patients to identify factors that might influence treatment decisions.
  • The study also aims to compare the effectiveness and safety of different treatments and to evaluate a new prognostic tool called the Meet-URO score against the established IMDC score.
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  • The Meet-URO 18 study investigates metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients undergoing nivolumab treatment in two distinct groups based on their progression-free survival (PFS) times.
  • The study utilizes detailed immunohistochemical analysis to assess various markers like T-lineage markers (CD3, CD4, CD8), macrophages (CD68), and PD-L1 expression in tumor samples from 113 patients, significantly expanding upon previous data.
  • Results indicate that tumor tissue with lower CD4 and higher CD56 expression correlates with a more favorable antitumor response, suggesting the potential of CD56 as a biomarker for immunotherapy effectiveness.
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Background: Neutrophil-to-eosinophil ratio (NER) has been described to be associated with outcomes to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in several tumor types, but less is known about its role of in the response to avelumab in advanced urothelial cancer (aUC). Thus, we reported outcomes by NER of aUC patients treated with avelumab as maintenance after initial response to platinum-based chemotherapy and enrolled in the Maintenance with AVeLumAb ([MALVA] in advanced urothelial neoplasms in response to first-line chemotherapy: an observational retrospective study) study (Meet-URO 25).

Patients And Methods: Median NER at baseline and after 3 cycles of avelumab were calculated.

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Background: About 20% of patients with renal cell carcinoma present with non-clear cell histology (nccRCC), encompassing various histological types. While surgery remains pivotal for localized-stage nccRCC, the role of cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) in metastatic nccRCC is contentious. Limited data exist on the role of CN in metastatic nccRCC under current standard of care.

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  • * The study involves detailed analysis of various immune markers in tumor samples, including T-cell markers (CD3, CD4, CD8), macrophage presence (CD68), and PD-L1 expression, now with an expanded sample size of 161 tumors from 113 patients.
  • * Findings indicate that lower CD4 levels and higher CD8/CD4 ratios correlate with certain tumor characteristics, suggesting a specific T-cell subpopulation plays a role in anti-tumor response; CD56 might serve as a potential
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  • - The ARON-2 study investigated the real-world effectiveness of pembrolizumab, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, in patients with advanced urothelial carcinoma who had progression after platinum-based chemotherapy, utilizing data from 836 patients across 88 institutions in 23 countries.
  • - Results showed median overall survival (OS) of 10.5 months and overall response rate (ORR) of 31%; those who progressed after initial chemotherapy (cohort A) had lower OS (9.1 months) compared to those who recurred within a year post-chemotherapy (cohort B) with 14.6 months OS.
  • - Multivariate analysis identified several prognostic factors affecting OS and progression-free survival (PFS),
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Background: Peritoneal metastases (PM) have been reported in approximately 1% of patients with metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma (mRCC). Outcome data are limited due to the rarity of this metastatic site. Therefore, the aim of our study is to describe renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients with PM treated as per clinical practice.

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Introduction: Penile squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) is a rare tumor with an aggressive behavior. The Meet-URO 23/I-RARE registry includes rare genitourinary malignancies. We extracted patients with PSCC to conduct a retrospective study aimed at assessing clinical outcomes and prognostic factors.

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  • * In a trial involving 79 patients, 38% had their axitinib treatment stopped after achieving tumor response, with 72% showing no disease progression eight weeks later; the median progression-free survival was 24 months.
  • * The study suggests that withdrawing VEGFR-TKI can reduce side effects while maintaining ICI treatment, indicating a potential new approach for managing mRCC, though it lacked a comparative control group.
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Instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) are significant health indicators closely related to executive functions and able to detect mild cognitive impairment. A decline in IADL usually precedes ADL limitation, including taking medications, and may therefore predict a cognitive decline. We aimed to investigate the association of patients' IADL score with other clinical factors, with a particular focus on the presence of a caregiver, and the impact on adherence to androgen receptor pathway inhibitors (ARPIs) and survival outcomes within the Meet-URO 5-ADHERE study.

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Background: Veneto Institute of Oncology has activated a simultaneous care outpatient clinic (SCOC) in which cancer patients with advanced-stage cancer are evaluated by oncologist and palliative care specialists. This cross-sectional study investigated patients' perceptions of the quality of this service.

Materials And Methods: An ad-hoc self-administered questionnaire, developed by SCOC team, was used to assess the satisfaction of patients admitted at SCOC consultation.

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Immunotherapy combinations with tyrosine-kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) had significantly improved outcomes of patients with mRCC. Predictive and prognostic factors are crucial to improve patients' counseling and management. The present study aimed to externally validate the prognostic value of a previously developed red cell-based score, including hemoglobin (Hb), mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and red cell distribution width (RDW), in patients with mRCC treated with first-line immunotherapy combinations (TKI plus ICI or ICI plus ICI).

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