ReviewNature reviews. Urology2018
Mechanisms of BCG immunotherapy and its outlook for bladder cancer.
Review in Nature reviews. Urology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 261 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
261 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 450 citations in OpenAlex.
- Immune mechanisms mediating the heterologous effects of BCG vaccination: a systematic review.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Pooled it
- Low-dose versus standard-dose bacille Calmette-Guérin for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Investigative and clinical urology · 2022Pooled it
- Randomized clinical trial of BCG vaccine in patients with convalescent COVID-19: Clinical evolution, adverse events, and humoral immune response.Journal of internal medicine · 2022Trial
- A prospective trial investigating the role of Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D in diagnosis and prognosis of bladder cancer.PloS one · 2022Trial
- Molecular Classifications and Candidate Biomarkers for Personalizing BCG Therapy in Non-Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- Impact of Photodynamic Diagnosis on Immune Cell Infiltration in BCG-treated Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer.European urology open science · 2026Article
- Formic acid released by intratumoralActa pharmaceutica Sinica. B · 2026Article
- The landscape of genitourinary cancer vaccines: clinical advances and future opportunities.Journal of advanced research · 2026Review
- Matricellular Proteins in Bladder Cancer: Context-Dependent Roles in Tumor Promotion and Suppression.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Immune checkpoint B7x promotes immune evasion and resistance to PD-1/PD-L1 blockade in bladder cancer.Genes & diseases · 2026Article
- Urologic malignancy in renal transplant recipients: Analysis of OPTN/UNOS data from 2000 to 2022.BMC cancer · 2026Article
- Fusobacterium nucleatum in cancer: Interactions with microbiota, tumour colonisation and cancer progression.Clinical and translational medicine · 2026Review
- NQO1-Mediated Anoikis Resistance and Immune Evasion Define a High-Risk Multi-Omic Subtype for Precision Management of T1 High-Grade Bladder Cancer.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Engineered BCG selectively triggers trained immunity in tumor-associated macrophages and sensitizes glioblastoma to radiotherapy in mice.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Non-classic deubiquitinase USP13 inhibits bladder cancer metastasis through destabilizing cytoplasmic KDM3A.Oncogene · 2026Article
- Systemic administration of liposomal trehalose dimycolate induces NK1.1⁺ cell mediated antitumor immunity in bladder cancer.BMC cancer · 2026Article
- Research progress and clinical translation challenges in the use of oncolytic bacteria for cancer therapy.Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England) · 2026Review
- Targeted Delivery of a Potent STING Agonist Payload via an Antibody-Drug Conjugate Drives Robust Antitumor Activity in Preclinical Models.Molecular cancer therapeutics · 2026Article
- Article
- High Oncological Efficacy of BCG Maintenance Therapy for Primary High-Grade T1 Urothelial Carcinoma of the Bladder.Cancers · 2026Article
201 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BCG immunotherapy is the gold-standard treatment for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer at high risk of recurrence or progression. Preclinical and clinical studies have revealed that a robust inflammatory response to BCG involves several steps: attachment of BCG; internalization of BCG into resident immune cells, normal cells, and tumour urothelial cells; BCG-mediated induction of innate immunity, which is orchestrated by a cellular and cytokine milieu; and BCG-mediated initiation of tumour-specific immunity. As an added layer of complexity, variation between clinical BCG strains might influence development of tumour immunity. However, more than 40 years after the first use of BCG for bladder cancer, many questions regarding its mechanism of action remain unanswered. Clearly, a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying BCG-mediated tumour immunity could lead to improved efficacy, increased tolerance of treatment, and identification of novel immune-based therapies. Indeed, enthusiasm for bladder cancer immunotherapy, and the possibility of combining BCG with other therapies, is increasing owing to the availability of targeted immunotherapies, including checkpoint inhibitors. Understanding of the mechanism of action of BCG immunotherapy has advanced greatly, but many questions remain, and further basic and clinical research efforts are needed to develop new treatment strategies for patients with bladder cancer.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.