Efficacy and safety of CalliSpheres® Microsphere transcatheter-arterial chemoembolization versus conventional TACE in treating renal angiomyolipoma patients.

Objective: Transcatheter-arterial chemoembolization (TACE) is a well-established interventional technique for various tumor treatments, whereas its application in renal angiomyolipoma (RAML) is seldom reported. Conventional TACE (cTACE) with bleomycin-lipiodol emulsion is effective and tolerable for RAML treatment. In this study, we aimed to further explore the efficacy and safety between bleomycin-loaded CalliSpheres^® microsphere TACE (CSM-TACE) and cTACE in treating RAML patients.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 54 RAML patients treated by CSM-TACE (n = 17) or cTACE (n = 37). Data on tumor size, tumor volume reduction ratio, patient percentage with tumor size reduction, white blood cells (WBCs), creatinine (Cre) after treatment, complications, and adverse events were retrieved.

Results: Tumor size (88.66 vs. 81.19 cm³, P = 0.970), patient percentage with tumor size reduction (12 [70.59%] vs. 30 [81.08%], P = 0.486) after treatment, WBCs (P = 0.114), Cre (P = 0.659), and change in Cre after treatment (P = 0.947) were not significantly different between groups, whereas tumor volume reduction ratio was slightly lower in the CSM-TACE group than in the cTACE group (12 ± 34% vs. 32 ± 31%, P = 0.047). The most common postoperative complication was a post-embolization syndrome, including fever, nausea, and abdominal pain, which occurred in 9 (52.94%) and 14 (37.84%) patients from the CSM-TACE and cTACE groups, respectively (P = 0.347).

Conclusion: CSM-TACE is effective in and well tolerated by RAML patients, implying its potential as an alternative therapy.