Whole body hyperthermia in adjuvant therapy of children with renal cell carcinoma

Abstract

Whole body hyperthermia (WBH) in combination with chemotherapy has been proven to be effective in some patients with advanced malignancies. However, only limited experience exists regarding the application of WBH with chemotherapy in children. We present the results of applying WBH and chemotherapy in five children with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). WBH (3 hr, 41.8-42.5 degrees C) combined with doxorubicin (50 mg/m2) and interferon-alpha (3 MU/m2) were applied to patients after nephrectomy and lymph node dissection. Each patient received three to eight courses of treatment three times weekly. All children tolerated the combined therapy well without complications. Follow-up of 7-68 months (median: 22 months) showed no tumor progression in patients with locoregional (n = 3) and metastatic (n = 2) disease. WBH with moderate dose doxorubicin and INF-alpha might be a feasible treatment option in childhood RCC.