Title:Electrochemotherapy in the Treatment of Kaposi’s Sarcoma: A Single
Centre Cohort Study and a Comparison with the Literature Data
Volume: 1
Author(s): Edoardo Cammarata, Roberto Giorgione, Marco Andreassi, Chiara Airoldi and Paola Savoia*
Affiliation:
- Department of Health Science, University of Eastern Piedmont, Novara, Italy
Keywords:
Electrochemotherapy, bleomycin, kaposi’s sarcoma, treatment, effectiveness, cosmetic outcomes.
Abstract:
Background: Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a tumor of endothelial derivation, which
primarily affects the skin and is mainly related to the type 8 Human Herpesvirus (HHV8). Its
onset is favored by immunosuppression, although the most common form is the classic or sporadic
KS mainly developing in elderly men of Mediterranean and Eastern European origin. Different
therapeutic options are available, depending on the clinical variant, progression pattern,
and comorbidities. The treatment of localized forms includes surgical excision, laser treatment,
cryosurgery, radiotherapy, imiquimod 5%, and intra-lesion injection of cytotoxic drugs; on the
other hand, the treatment of widespread disease encompasses radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Methods: In this scenario, Electrochemotherapy (ECT), has shown to be an effective alternative
to traditional treatment for disseminated KS skin lesions. The rationale of ECT relies on the local
application of short, high-voltage electric pulses, able to open transient pores in the cell
membrane (reversible electroporation that increases the delivery of some poorly permeant cytotoxic
agents into the cytosol.
Results: Herein, we performed a retrospective analysis on 9 KS patients treated with ECT at our
center between June 2016 and January 2020. The rate of Complete Response (CR) was 77.8%
after the first cycle of treatment and 88.9% after the second course, with an overall response
(OR) of 100%.
Conclusion: Sustained local control of treated lesions was present in 77.8% of patients 6
months after the treatment and all of them reported only mild local toxicity, together with an
excellent functional and cosmetic outcome, in agreement with data obtained from the comparison
with the recent literature.
