Objectives: To evaluate the safety, efficacy, functional outcomes, and local tumor control of
ablation procedures for the treatment of renal T1a and T1b lesions in a solitary kidney.
Methods: Sixty percutaneous ablative procedures of renal T1a and T1b lesions, in 25 patients
with solitary kidney, were retrospectively analyzed: 26 (43.3%) procedures with radiofrequency
ablation (RFA), 26 (43.3%) with cryoablation (CRA), and 8 (13.4%) with microwave ablation
(MWA). Biopsy was performed for all the lesions. Efficacy of the treatment was evaluated
as the absence of residual tumor immediately and on the 1 month after ablation. The
secondary outcomes of interest included complications rate, disease-free survival
(DFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), overall survival (OS), and renal function.
The correlation between tumor characteristics and the three treatment groups was conducted
using Kruskal–Wallis test. The same test was also used to evaluate the correlation
among DFS, CSS, OS, and renal function and the three treatment groups. Results: The mean age of the patients was 65.6 years (54–88 years); the mean tumor size was
19.3 mm (6–55). Fifty-nine lesions (96.7%) were T1a and two (3.3%) T1b. The mean RENAL
nephrometry score was 5.5 (range, 4.0–10.0). Analyzing all the tumor characteristics
among the three groups of treatments, lesion dimensions and the RENAL score significantly
correlated with the procedural employed method with a P < 0.01, respectively. The
treatment was effective in 96.7% of cases, with periprocedural major complications
in only three patients (5%). In 1-year follow-up, 10 recurrences (16.7%) were documented:
four (15.4%) for lesions treated with RFA, one (12.5%) with MWA, and five (19.2%)
with CRA (P > 0.05). All recurrences were retreated with a consequent local tumor
control. Analysis of renal function showed no significant changes between pre- and
post-ablation creatinine levels. The only significant predictor of DFS in the multivariate
analysis was the histotype, with a higher recurrence rate in RCC (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Our study found no significant differences in complications, renal function outcomes,
and oncologic outcomes between the three ablative procedures for patients with a tumor
in a solitary kidney. Patient selection, based on the tumor characteristics, remains
crucial for the choice of the type of treatment.