Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2025 Nov 1;35(6):645-652.
doi: 10.1097/MOU.0000000000001326. Epub 2025 Jul 16.

Novel intravesical delivery systems for nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer

Alessandro Uleri  1 , Olga Katzendorn  1 , Zine Eddine Khene  2 , Evanguelos Xylinas  3 , Felix-Guerrero Ramos  4 , Benjamin Pradere  1
Affiliations
Review

Novel intravesical delivery systems for nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer

Alessandro Uleri et al. Curr Opin Urol. .

Abstract

Purpose of review: Nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) represents approximately 75% of bladder cancer cases at diagnosis and poses a significant management challenge due to high recurrence rates and risk for progression. Conventional intravesical therapies face limitations including suboptimal drug delivery, mucosal exposure time and significant adverse events. This review provides a timely assessment of novel intravesical delivery systems developed to overcome these limitations and improve oncological outcomes for patients with NMIBC.

Recent findings: Several innovative delivery systems show promising results. Hyperthermic intravesical chemotherapy (HIVEC) demonstrates its efficacy in selected high-risk NMIBC. Intravesical drug-releasing systems (iDRS) like TAR-200 showed complete response rates up to 84% in BCG-unresponsive disease, while TAR-210 shows promise for FGFR-altered NMIBC. UGN-102, a reverse thermal gel containing mitomycin C, achieves 65-79% complete response rates in low-grade intermediate-risk NMIBC. Oncofid-P-B, combining paclitaxel with hyaluronic acid, demonstrates efficacy in BCG-unresponsive CIS.

Summary: Novel intravesical delivery systems show to enhance drug retention, improve tissue penetration, and potentially reduce adverse events. While traditional chemotherapy or BCG remain the gold-standard adjuvant treatments for NMIBC, these novel approaches offer promising alternatives for selected patients pending on ongoing clinical validation.

Keywords: Oncofid; TAR-200; TAR-210; UGN-102; drug-releasing systems; hyperthermic intravesical chemotherapy; intravesical therapy; nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Babjuk M, Burger M, Capoun O, et al. European Association of Urology Guidelines on Nonmuscle-invasive Bladder Cancer (Ta, T1, and Carcinoma in Situ). Eur Urol 2022; 81:75–94.
    1. Sylvester RJ, van der Meijden AP, Oosterlinck W, et al. Predicting recurrence and progression in individual patients with stage Ta T1 bladder cancer using EORTC risk tables: a combined analysis of 2596 patients from seven EORTC trials. Eur Urol 2006; 49:466–477.
    1. Holzbeierlein JM, Bixler BR, Buckley DI, et al. Diagnosis and treatment of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer: AUA/SUO Guideline: 2024 Amendment. J Urol 2024; 211:533–538.
    1. Sylvester RJ, van der Meijden AP, Lamm DL. Intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin reduces the risk of progression in patients with superficial bladder cancer: a meta-analysis of the published results of randomized clinical trials. J Urol 2002; 168:1964–1970.
    1. Pettenati C, Ingersoll MA. Mechanisms of BCG immunotherapy and its outlook for bladder cancer. Nat Rev Urol 2018; 15:615–625.

MeSH terms

Substances