Background: Management of high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is difficult, as no validated tool exists to predict risk of recurrence. Urine has the potential to contain a variety of molecular markers that may be associated with tumors.
Methods: The study included 3 groups: group 1comprised 100 patients diagnosed with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). Each of Group 2 included 100 patients with other pathology rather than NMIBC. Group3 comprised 100 healthy persons. Group1 was subdivided into patients with and without recurrence. The patients with recurrent tumors were subclassified into single or multiple recurrences. Urinary markers: TERTand miR-34a were evaluated.
Results: Higher urinary TERT > 3.2 and lower urinary miR34a < 0.85 were detected significantly in NMIBC group compared to controls.
Conclusion: Urinary molecular biomarkers are reliable non-invasive tools for NMIBC detection and prediction of recurrence. Urinary TERT >3.2 and miR34a< 0.85 were significantly higher in patients with NMIBC in comparison with controls. Urinary TERT > 3.2 had the highest overall diagnostic accuracy for bladder cancer detection.