A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of photodynamic therapy using 5-aminolaevulinic acid for the treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

✍ Scribed by Adrian A. Barnett; J. Christoph Haller; Fiona Cairnduff; Geoffrey Lane; Stanley B. Brown; David J.H. Roberts

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2003
• Tongue: French
• Weight: 67 KB
• Volume: 103
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0020-7136
• DOI: 10.1002/ijc.10888

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) using topical 5‐aminolaevulinic acid (ALA) has been used to treat histologically confirmed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN‐I and ‐I/II) in a randomised, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled protocol. Fluorescence microscopy revealed that topical application of 3% ALA in Intrasite Gel® to the cervix for 3 hr resulted in the accumulation of protoporphyrin IX in the cervical epithelium. Treatment of CIN with ALA‐PDT was well tolerated, with only 3/12 patients in the PDT arm (0/13 in the placebo arm) reporting any discomfort during illumination. Histologic examination of the treated tissue following loop excision 3 months post‐PDT indicated that 33% of patients had no evidence of CIN, 42% had no change in the grade of their disease, whilst 25% exhibited an apparent progression of disease. In the control group, the respective figures were 31%, 38% and 31%. There was no significant difference in response between the groups receiving ALA‐PDT and those receiving placebo treatment. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.