title: Testicular germ cell tumor: Short and long-term side effects of treatment among survivors.
abstract: Long-term prognosis of germ cell tumor (GCT) types is excellent, however, treatment is associated with non-negligible complication rates and a negative impact on quality of life. The present study described treatment results in terms of survival, both short and long-term toxicity, and paternity rates in a cohort of patients treated at Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels (Brussels, Belgium). The present study analyzed the data of a cohort of patients with GCT types. Pre-operative patient and tumor characteristics were described. Performance status, pulmonary function tests and renal clearance prior to chemotherapy were noted. Chemotherapeutic regimens and their associated toxicities were analyzed. The duration to event-free, cancer-specific and overall survivals were estimated using Kaplan-Meier curves. A total of 115 patients (median age, 31-years-old) were treated for a GCT at Jules Bordet Institute. At a median follow-up of 6-years, 11 (10%) patients had relapsed and 2 (2%) developed a second malignant neoplasm. At the final follow-up, 97 (89%) and 6 (5.5%) patients exhibited complete and partial remission, respectively. A total of 6% of patients exhibited a progressive disease. In terms of short-term toxicity, 11% of patients presented with febrile neutropenia. The 10-year overall survival rate and relapse-free survival rate were 93.4 and 89.8%, respectively. The paternity rate post-treatment was 27%. Testicular GCT survivors suffered from short- and long-term treatment-associated side effects on both a physical and psychological level. A long-term close follow-up is necessary in order to assist the patient with these treatment-induced complications.
authors: Department of Oncology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Thierry
authors: T
authors: Gil
authors: Department of Oncology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Spyridon
authors: S
authors: Sideris
authors: Department of Urology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Fouad
authors: F
authors: Aoun
authors: Department of Urology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Roland
authors: R
authors: van Velthoven
authors: Department of Pathology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Nicolas
authors: N
authors: Sirtaine
authors: Department of Biostatistics, Data Center, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Marianne
authors: M
authors: Paesmans
authors: Department of Biostatistics, Data Center, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Lieveke
authors: L
authors: Ameye
authors: Department of Oncology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Ahmad
authors: A
authors: Awada
authors: Department of Oncology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Daniel
authors: D
authors: Devriendt
authors: Department of Urology, Jules Bordet Institute, University ULB of Brussels, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Alexandre
authors: A
authors: Peltier
keywords: adverse effects; paternity; quality of life; testicular cancer; testicular cancer survivors