[Molecular Tumour Boards for Urological Tumours: Hope or Disappointment?]

Abstract

In addition to the traditional, evidence-based, guideline-driven 'one-size-fits-all' treatment approach, personalised oncological therapy has been gaining increasing importance over the past decade. The central element in this process is a comprehensive molecular pathological analysis of the patient's tumour tissue, followed by interdisciplinary evaluation of the results and their translation into a patient-specific, therapeutic strategy within the framework of the molecular tumour board. These specialised molecular tumour boards are associated with substantial financial, time and personnel resources, as well as highly specialised expertise, and are therefore typically established only at university hospitals or major cancer centres. Despite the high prevalence of urological tumours, very few uro-oncological patient cases are discussed in the molecular tumour boards. In addition, the balance between the resources required and the benefits is often viewed critically. This review article aims to outline the target group, purpose, funding, and operational structure of molecular tumour boards in order to critically assess the situation and effectiveness in uro-oncology.