Pleurodesis outcome in malignant pleural mesothelioma: Table 1

Efficacy and cost of video-assisted thoracoscopic partial pleurectomy versus talc pleurodesis in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MesoVATS): an open-label, randomised, controlled trial

“…23,24 Studies of talc pleurodesis efficacy focusing specifically on patients with mesothelioma seem to have lower success rates than studies in heterogeneous populations, probably because extensive visceral disease, common in mesothelioma, mitigates against successful pleurodesis because of failure of visceral and parietal pleura apposition combined with a paucity of normal mesothelial cells. 25,26 A retrospective study 27 of 165 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma who underwent pleurodesis reported that pleural effusion was not controlled in 31% of patients, with no difference between talc slurry and talc poudrage. At the inception of our trial, the predominant method for assessing pleural effusion was chest radiograph-a less sensitive method than ultrasound, which is now widely used.…”

British Thoracic Society Guideline for the investigation and management of malignant pleural mesothelioma

“…Fysh et al undertook a large retrospective case series which demonstrated no difference in surgical versus ‘medical’ pleurodesis in MPM (28.2% vs 29.7% complete success, 39.7% vs 38.8% partial success) 95 . In another retrospective series, Bielsa et al demonstrated worse pleurodesis success in mesothelioma (66%) and lung (63%) versus breast (77%) and other (74%) 96 …”

Complications of indwelling pleural catheter use and their management

“…By 6 months, talc pleurodesis had failed in approximately 50% of patients 8. Fysh et al 3 showed, in 165 patients with mesothelioma, that talc pleurodesis was successful in life-time control of MPEs in about one-third of patients; 32% of all patients required further pleural intervention. On the contrary, over 90% of patients treated with IPCs did not need further drainages 9.…”