Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiotherapy for Primary Renal Cell Carcinoma in Non-surgical Candidates: Initial Clinical Experience

Aims: To report the outcomes of a cohort of patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treated using stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR).

Materials and methods: Patients treated with SABR for primary RCC from 1 January 2012 to 1 April 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were non-surgical candidates treated with doses ranging from 30 to 40 Gy in five fractions. The tumour sizes and serum creatinine were compared between the pre-treatment assessment and subsequent follow-up assessments. The worst acute and late grade ≥2 toxicity rates were recorded.

Results: In total, 16 patients were included in this study. The median follow-up was 19 months (range 7-30). Eleven patients had stable disease, four had partial responses and none had progressive disease, indicating a local control rate of 100%. One patient had grade 2 acute nausea and two patients had grade 4 renal toxicities (two patients with pre-existing stage 4-5 chronic kidney disease required dialysis following SABR). Four of four patients with pre-SABR symptoms (pain and/or haematuria) had symptomatic relief after SABR.

Conclusion: SABR for RCC is safe, the toxicities are minimal, and the local control is excellent at early follow-up. This technique should be further evaluated in prospective clinical trials.