Neoadjuvant stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy combined with surgical treatment for renal cell carcinoma and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus: a prospective pilot study

Background Surgical treatment for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and inferior vena cava (IVC) tumor thrombus (TT) is difficult, and the postoperative complication rate is high. This study aimed to explore the safety and oncologic outcomes of neoadjuvant stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR) combined with surgical treatment for RCC and IVC-TT. Methods Patients with RCC and IVC-TTs were enrolled in this study. All patients received neoadjuvant SABR focused on the IVC at a dose of 30 Gy in 5 fractions, followed by 2 ~ 4 weeks of rest. Then, radical nephrectomy and IVC tumor thrombectomy were performed for each patient. Adverse effects, perioperative outcomes, and long-term prognoses were recorded. Results From June 2018 to January 2019, 8 patients were enrolled—4 with Mayo grade II TT and 4 with Mayo grade III TT. Four (50%) patients had complicated IVC wall invasion according to CT/MRI. All patients received neoadjuvant SABR as planned. Short-term local control was observed in all 8 patients. Only Grade 1–2 adverse events were reported. In total, 3 (37.5%) laparoscopic surgeries and 5 (62.5%) open surgeries were performed. The median operation time was 359 (IQR: 279–446) min, with a median intraoperative bleeding volume of 750 (IQR: 275–2175) ml. The median postoperative hospital stay was 7 (5–10) days. With a 26-month (range: 5–41) follow-up period, the estimated mean overall survival was 30.67 ± 5.38 months. Conclusions This is the first preoperative radiotherapy study in Asia that focused on patients with TT. This study revealed the considerable safety of neoadjuvant SABR for RCC with IVC-TT. Trial registration This study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trials Registry on 2018-03-08 (ChiCTR1800015118). For more information, please see the direct link ( https://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.html?proj=25747 ).