Mitomycin C With Hyperthermia and Intravesical Mitomycin C to Treat Recurrent Bladder Cancer

It is well established that tumor cells are sensitive to heat and when combined with a chemotherapeutic agent, drug uptake and intracellular distribution of drug within malignant cells is improved due to increased cellular permeability. Further, hyperthermia inhibits deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) repair as a result of increased reaction between DNA and chemotherapy. By heating bladder tissue and accelerating the necessary series of reactions to link agents such as mitomycin C to cell DNA, this effect may be optimized. Depending on the extent of resection (and location, size, and depth of invasion of remaining tumor) after transurethral resection of the bladder tumor(TURBT), recommended adjuvant therapy consists of intravesical chemotherapy. MMC has been studied at doses as high as 80 mg without producing significant or irreversible side effects. The most commonly used dose of mitomycin is 40 mg.2 This pilot study proposes to use Mitomycin C at a dose of 40 mg in conjunction with deep hyperthermia to enhance the effect intravesical chemotherapy as second-line treatment of recurrent TCC (Stage Ta, T1, or Tis) of the bladder after surgical resection and standard adjuvant therapy.