Advances in Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis Treatment: Adjuvant Intralesional Bevacizumab's Impact, Potential and Insights from a Case Series Study

Abstract

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis is an aggressive benign disease characterised by the repeated growth of multiple warts involving the larynx as well as other parts of the respiratory tract. Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis is most commonly caused by human papillomaviruses 6 and 11. It requires multiple surgical procedures for tumour debulking.Our study aims to evaluate the impact and potential of adjuvant intralesional bevacizumab in the treatment of recurrent respiratory papillomatosis while providing valuable insights based on a case series analysis.A prospective study of a total of 13 patients with Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis attending a tertiary care hospital with ages ranging from 3 to 30 years was conducted from February 2018 to February 2023 by intralesional bevacizumab 1 ml with a concentration of 2.5 mg/ml per dose, 3 injections, each once every 4 weeks by calculating the number of operative procedures per year, duration of time between procedures, calculating the Derkay score before 1 year of the first injection and after 1 year of the last dose injection of bevacizumab treatment. Inclusion criteria are ages between 3 and 30 years with recurrent respiratory papillomatosis who underwent at least 4 or more surgical procedures with no adjuvant therapies. In all our cases, the affected area was the larynx.Adjuvant therapy with intralesional bevacizumab increases the duration of time between surgical procedures and reduces the number of operative procedures each year with an overall improvement in the Derkay score. No adverse drug effects have been reported in our study.Intralesional Bevacizumab is an effective and safe adjuvant treatment option for recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. It increases the duration of time between surgical procedures and decreases the number of procedures per year with an overall improvement in the Derkay score.

Keywords: Bevacizumab; Human papillomavirus; Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis; Tumour debulking.