Advancing Age and the Odds of Upgrading and Upstaging at Radical Prostatectomy in Men with Gleason Score 6 Prostate Cancer

PURPOSE: To identify a subset of men with Gleason score (GS) 6 prostate cancer who are at high risk for upgrading/upstaging who should be recommended for multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between 1992 and 2017, a total of 3571 men with GS6 prostate cancer were consecutively treated at a single institution with radical prostatectomy. Logistic regression multivariable analyses to determine the odds of upgrading and upstaging were performed, adjusting for age and year of diagnosis, clinical T category, prostate-specific antigen level, number of biopsy cores, and percentage of positive biopsy cores.

RESULTS: Of 3571 men, the disease of 115 (3.22%), 245 (6.86%), and 254 (7.11%) was upgraded, was upstaged, or had positive surgical margins (R1), respectively. Older age at diagnosis was associated with an increased risk of upgrading disease to GS7 or higher, prostatectomy T3/T4, and R1 with adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) of 1.05 (1.01-1.08; P = .005), 1.02 (1.00-1.05; P = .048), and 1.02 (1.002-1.05; P = .03), respectively. Older age was associated with an increasing proportion of men with disease upgraded to GS7 or higher (T1c: P = .002; T2 or higher: P = .04) or upstaged to pT3/4 or pT2R1 (T1c: P = .02; T2 or higher: P = .02) among men with ≥ 33% but not < 33% positive biopsy cores.

CONCLUSION: Before initiating active surveillance, performing multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging in otherwise healthy older men with GS6 prostate cancer and ≥ 33% positive biopsy cores should be considered.