Efficacy and safety of CT-guided microwave ablation for stage T1a renal cell carcinoma in patients with a solitary kidney

Objective To retrospectively evaluate early clinical outcomes of percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) for stage T1a renal cell carcinomas (RCCs) in solitary kidney patients. Materials and methods 15 solitary kidney patients with 16 stage T1a N0M0 biopsy-proved RCCs underwent CT-guided percutaneous microwave ablation between October 2016 and July 2020. The patients were followed up with contrast-enhanced computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging at 1, 3, and 6 months and every 6 months thereafter. Serum creatinine levels of each patient pre MWA, 1 day after MWA and the most recent record were collected. Technical effectiveness, local recurrence, survival rates and complications were accessed. Results Complete ablation was achieved in all 16 tumors (100%) including 13 clear cell carcinomas and 3 papillary carcinomas. Within the follow-up time (median: 24 months) no tumor recurrence or major complication was detected. No significant change in serum creatinine level was noted. The cancer-specific survival rate was 100% (15 of 15), and 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival rates were 100%, 93.3%, and 93.3%, respectively. Conclusion Percutaneous MWA is an effective and safe treatment option for stage T1a RCCs in solitary kidney patients; it can achieve high complete ablation rate in selected lesions of appropriate size and location.