Features
Thermal ablative techniques for small renal masses
The incidence of renal cell carcinoma has increased over the past decade which can be partly attributed to the increased use of imaging modalities [1,2]. Nephron sparing procedures for the management of small renal tumours have gained popularity which include...
Overview of partial nephrectomy techniques: influence of technology
Traditionally, radical nephrectomy was the preferred operation for kidney cancer, while partial nephrectomy was reserved for specific circumstances and essential indications such as a tumour in a solitary kidney, bilateral kidney tumours, or severe chronic kidney disease (CKD). Given the...
The scent of Ethiopia: a personal story part 2
In May/June 2016 we featured a wonderful account of Zeeshan Aslam’s first trip with Urolink to the Hawassa Referral Hospital in Ethiopia (see here). One year on we are delighted that Zeeshan has once again taken the time to provide...
Testing radical prostatectomy in men with prostate cancer and oligometastases to the bone: a randomised controlled feasibility study
Prostate cancer is the commonest cancer and the second most frequent cause of cancer death in Western men [1]. The recent STAMPEDE data suggests a median survival of just 42.1 months in the control arm of metastatic men [2]. Current...
The PROMIS trial – time for multi-parametric MRI before a first prostate biopsy
Whilst the relatively random process of 12 core transrectal ultrasound guided (TRUS) prostate biopsy remains by far the most widely employed approach to prostate cancer diagnosis in the UK, its flaws as a standalone diagnostic strategy are increasingly apparent. TRUS-biopsy...
Consent: your obligations in the modern, post-Montgomery era
There has been so much recent discussion and so much emphasis placed on the fundamental right that we all have to determine what is or is not done to us, the right to self-determination, that it would be either a...
Small renal masses – diagnosis and management
Renal cancer is the eighth most common cancer in the UK and accounts for about 3% of all new cancer diagnoses [1]. The incidence rates are steadily rising, with the highest rates being in older men and women. This rise...
An introduction to research governance
Research is the process of acquiring new generalisable knowledge and should be fully integrated into healthcare work. There is a growing drive to encourage and further develop evidence-based practice in medicine so that staff and patients benefit from improved healthcare...
Focal therapy for prostate cancer – ready for prime time?
The current therapeutic ratio for radical therapy in many men with localised prostate cancer is not ideal. For a significant side-effect profile, there seems to be a small survival benefit over a 10-15 year period. A strategy that might balance...
An update on antibiotic prophylaxis in TRUS-guided prostate biopsy
Since its inception in the 1980s, transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)-guided prostate biopsy has remained the standard tool for the histological diagnosis of prostate cancer. There are several advantages to this technique which have led to the widespread use of TRUS in...
The surgical trainer – are we still evolving?
“We need a system and we will surely have it – which will produce not only surgeons, but surgeons of the highest type” William Halsted MD William Halsted, a famous American surgeon, is widely credited with developing the first formal...
Bladder cancer: where are we with intravesical therapies?
In the United Kingdom, almost 10,500 new cases of bladder cancer were identified in 2013, with over 5000 deaths in 2012 [1]. Seventy percent of new cases will be non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) at diagnosis and therefore will be...
