Combined Intravesical Chemotherapy with Mitomycin C and Local Bladder Microwave-induced Hyperthermia As a Preoperative Therapy for Superficial Bladder Tumors. A Preliminary Clinical Study

Twelve patients suffering from superficial transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder underwent treatment combining simultaneous mitomycin C topical instillation and local endocavitary hyperthermia as a preoperative adjunct to transurethral resection in a preliminary clinical study. A specifically designed system to deliver and monitor local bladder hyperthermia was used. The feasibility, the subjective tolerance and the side effects of the combined treatment were the main target of our investigation. Endoscopic and histologic features, assessed before, during and after this combined approach, showed selective damage to neoplastic areas with minimal changes in the normal urothelium. Local intravesical concurrent chemotherapy and hyperthermia administration is found to be a safe and well-tolerated approach for superficial bladder tumor treatment. The preliminary results encourage further studies to define the limits and prospects of this regimen, in both superficial bladder tumor ablation and prophylaxis of recurrences.