Higher resilience in radical cystectomy patients is associated with improved health related quality of life post-operatively.

Radical cystectomy (RC) with urinary diversion (UD) is associated with substantial morbidity. Enhanced recovery after surgery protocols, increased robotic usage, and improvements in urinary diversion have been evaluated for their effects on health-related Quality of Life (HRQoL), however, results are mixed. How psychosocial traits inherent to the patient influence HRQoL outcomes is unknown in this population. This study aimed to evaluate resilience and its correlation with HRQoL in a cohort of patients undergoing RC for bladder cancer. Patients with bladder cancer undergoing RC with UD at the University of Kansas Medical Center were screened for prospective enrollment in this clinical trial (NCT06337305). The validated Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 25 (CD-RISC), the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Bladder-Cystectomy (FACT-BL-Cys), and the PROMIS 29-v2.0 were administered preoperatively, 2-3 weeks postoperatively, and at 90 days postoperatively. Patient demographics, pathology, and complication data were collected. Between November 2020 and August 2022, 52 patients completed the survey data. Patients were stratified based on baseline resilience score. The higher resilience group scored 85.7, 85.0, and 81.9 compared to 64.9, 70.4, and 72.0 at the three time points which all remained statistically significant. Participant resilience scores using the CD-RISC did not correlate with quality-of-life measures using the PROMIS or FACT-Bl-Cys at baseline or two weeks but did correlate at 90 days (p < 0.01). Resilience did not correlate with the patient's pathology stage or 90-day complication data. Patients with higher baseline resilience maintain higher levels throughout the perioperative period and correlate with QOL.