[Sequential treatment with Mitomycin C and BCG in non muscle invasive bladder cancer.] / Tratamiento secuencial con Mitomicina C y BCG en el cáncer vesical no músculo-invasivo.

Bacilus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) administered intravesical is an effective therapy in non muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), but it presents limitations regarding recurrence and toxicity. For years, many case series have been published where sequential therapy with BCG and Mitomycin C (MMC) was tried. In this article, we perform a review of the data supplied by these articles with the aim to determine the safety and efficacy of combination, and what is the group of patients it should be indicated. Many studies show that combination therapy did not cause more toxicity and improved the interval free of disease with decrease of tumor progression compared to BCG or MMC monotherapy. Therefore, a combination of MMC and BCG therapy seems safe, but more clinical studies are required for a future evaluation.

The efficacy of Apaziquone in the treatment of bladder cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Bladder cancer is nowadays a common tumor. Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) has still chances of recurrence and progression in spite of surgery and adjuvant treatments. New therapies are being developed to reduce these percentages with less adverse effects - Apaziquone (EO9) is an example. Areas covered: A literature search has been performed using Pubmed, UpToDate and Google verified information (mainly from Food and Drug Administration and Spectrum Pharmaceutics websites). We have included data from the most representative clinical trials and reviews published. Expert opinion: Apaziquone is considered a promising chemical agent if applied intravesically due mainly to its pharmacodynamics and safety profile. There is evidence for this with respect to adjuvant chemo ablative therapy and as a post-transurethral resection of bladder (TURB) single-dose regimen. As a result, new clinical phase III trials are needed both to evaluate its efficacy as an adjuvant therapy in the spectrum from intermediate- to high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer and to select the most appropriate candidates and treatment schedule. As a conclusion, Apaziquone is a good candidate to become a better alternative as an adjuvant therapy for the treatment of NMIBC in the near future.