Integrative Somatic and Germline Molecular Characterization of Genitourinary Cancers

We have performed integrative bulk (whole exome sequencing of tumor and normal paired and whole transcriptome sequencing) and single cell analysis of primary and metastatic non-prostate genitourinary cancer specimens, such as renal and bladder tumors.Version 2: Additional sequencing of integrative bulk (whole exome sequencing of tumor and normal paired and whole transcriptome sequencing) and single cell analysis of primary and metastatic non-prostate genitourinary cancer specimens. Within this version, we include a cohort to study muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). We hypothesized that specific interactions between specific urothelial malignant cells and immune cells jointly promote chemotherapy resistance in MIBC. To investigate this hypothesis, we paired complementary single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNAseq) and spatial transcriptomic methods in clinically integrated contexts with focused functional assessments to understand cancer and immune cell multicellular communities implicated in resistance to neoadjuvant cisplatin-based chemotherapy.]]>
Inclusion criteria:a) Must be able to give informed consent or have a legal guardian able to give informed consentb) Adults > 18 years oldc) Histologic diagnosis of diagnosis muscle-invasive bladder cancer by a board-certified pathologist d) Receive at least 3 cycles of neoadjuvant cisplatin-based chemotherapy e) Must undergo radical cystectomy with urinary diversion Exclusion criteria: a) Unable to provide informed consent b) Prior pelvic radiation therapy for malignancies other than bladder cancer ]]>