Ureteroscopic and percutaneous management of upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC): systematic review

What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? Endoscopic management of upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) using either ureteroscopy and laser ablation, or percutaneous resection, is a management option for treating selected low-grade tumours with favourable characteristics. However, the evidence base for such practice is relatively weak, as the reported experience is mainly limited to small case series (level of evidence 4), or non-randomised comparative studies that are unmatched for tumour stage (level of evidence 3b), with variability of follow-up duration and reported outcome measures. The present systematic review comprehensively reviews the outcomes of all studies of endoscopic management of UTUC, including the role of topical adjuvant therapy. It establishes for the first time a structured reference for endoscopic management of UTUC, and is a foundation for further clinical studies.