Nomograms in urologic oncology: is there a contamination today?

In recent years, increase in number of articles related with nomograms and identification of new nomograms in urologic malignancies, caused a discussion on this topic. Some authors suggested that urologists should increase accuracy and quality of conventional nomograms instead of increasing their quality. However, another group concluded that the predictive value of nomogram is superior to the clinicians’ predictions and offered more common use of nomograms among uro-oncologists. Especially, the inventors of famous nomograms encouraged their usage. The previous studies commonly aimed to provide the improvement of novel disease biomarkers, their integration into conventional nomograms and prediction of risk analysis more accurately. Despite their limitations, nomograms are powerful tools for individualized evidence-based medical decision making. Herein, the use and necessity of nomograms in clinical practice was discussed and relavant literature was reviewed.