Summary: | Thromboembolic events (TEE) are high-risk complications in patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and radical cystectomy (RC) for urothelial muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC). The purpose of the study was to investigate any differences in TEE-incidence, comparing peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) versus a totally implanted port (PORT) as CVA (central venous access) during NAC. We identified 947 cystectomized MIBC-patients from four Swedish medical centers in 2009–2021. Inclusion criteria were cT2-T4aN0M0 and 375 patients were finally eligible and evaluated, divided into: NAC-administered (<i>n</i> = 283) resp. NAC-naïve-NAC-eligible (<i>n</i> = 92), the latter as tentative control group. Data on TEEs and types of CVA were retrospectively collected and individually validated, from final transurethral resection of the bladder tumor (TUR-B) to 30 days post-RC. Adjusted logistic regression and log rank test were used for statistical analyses. Amongst NAC-administered, 83% (<i>n</i> = 235) received PICCs and 15% (<i>n</i> = 42) PORTs. Preoperative TEEs occurred in 38 PICC-patients (16.2%) and in one PORT-patient (2.4%), with 47 individual events registered. We found a significantly increased odds ratio of TEE in NAC-administered PICC-patients compared to in PORT-patients (OR: 8.140, <i>p</i>-value: 0.042, 95% CI 1.078–61.455). Our findings indicate a greater risk for pre-RC TEEs with PICCs than with PORTs, suggesting favoring the usage of PORTs for MIBC-NAC-patients.
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