Probe ablation as salvage therapy for renal tumors in von Hippel-Lindau patients: The Cleveland Clinic experience with 3 years follow-up

Abstract Background To evaluate the efficacy and safety of probe ablative therapy as salvage treatment for renal tumor in von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) patients after previous partial nephrectomy (PN). Methods Medical records of VHL patients undergoing probe ablative treatment for renal tumors from March 2003 to January 2010 at our institution were retrospectively analyzed. Results Fourteen VHL patients who were submitted to salvage probe ablative therapy were included in the analysis. Twelve patients (85%) had a solitary kidney. Overall, 33 tumors were ablated by either percutaneous cryoablation (P-Cryo) ( n of procedures = 13), radiofrequency ablation (RFA) ( n = 14), and laparoscopic cryoablation (L-Cryo) ( n = 3). Average maximal renal tumor diameter was 2.6 ± 1 cm. Average ablation time was 18.3 ± 2.1 minutes for P-Cryo, 36.7 ± 17 minutes for RFA, and 17.3 ± 4 minutes for L-Cryo. All procedures were successfully completed without transfusions and intraoperative complications. No early postoperative complications were recorded. Postoperative decline in renal function was minimal and not clinically significant. With a mean follow-up of 37.6 months (range 12–82), 4 patients had a suspicious recurrence on computed tomogaphy/magnetic resonance imaging (CT/MRI) scan and in 3 of them a re-ablation was performed. Actuarial overall and cancer-specific survivals were 92% and 100%, respectively. Conclusions Probe ablative therapy seems to represent a suitable treatment option for VHL patients with a previous history of PN as it offers a repeatable operation, with a high technical success rate and causing minor changes in renal function.