The effectiveness results were as follows:
Three patients died of their malignancies at 7, 9, and 10 days, respectively, after bleomycin instillation, but none of these deaths were related to the procedure.
The authors observed a trend towards more frequent relapse at 30 days after bleomycin instillation, which reached significance after 90 days and achieved greater significance at 180 days.
Recurrences led to secondary treatments within 180 days after bleomycin in eight cases and after talc pleurodesis in two cases, (p=0.04).
After bleomycin pleurodesis, more fluid was drained than with talc poudrage, and the duration of chest tube drainage was longer by 1 day.
In the first three days after treatment, scores for dyspnea, cough, pain, and overall well-being were not significantly different in the talc poudrage and bleomycin groups. Bleomycin-treated patients, however, scored pain intensity, higher.
Side effects of both treatments were minor.
There was no major complication or death.
There were two recurrences of effusion in the thoracoscopic talc pleurodesis group.