Neoadjuvant nivolumab with gemcitabine and cisplatin followed by adjuvant nivolumab for previously-untreated muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Neoadjuvant (before surgery) nivolumab in addition to gemcitabine and cisplatin followed by adjuvant (additional) nivolumab is in clinical development for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). MIBC is when the cancer has spread beyond the lining of the bladder and into the muscle layer. The most well-known risk factor for MIBC is smoking, and the most common symptom is blood in the urine. A common treatment option for patients with MIBC treated with curative intent is a radical cystectomy, a surgery where parts or all of the bladder is removed. Therefore, other treatment approaches with long disease control additional to surgery are needed.