INCIDENCE AND TYPES OF COMPLICATIONS IN CANCER PATIENTS WITH TOTALLY IMPLANTABLE VENOUS CATHETERS afgm2011@gmail.com

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INCIDENCE AND TYPES OF COMPLICATIONS IN CANCER PATIENTS WITH TOTALLY IMPLANTABLE VENOUS CATHETERS

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Andrés Gempeler Rojas andres.gempeler@fvl.org.co Fundación Valle del Lili Cali Colombia

Alberto Federico García afgm2011@gmail.com Fundación Valle del Lili Cali Colombia *

Colombia

Oral or Poster

Totally implantable venous catheters (TIVC) are the standard access for chemotherapy in cancer patients. Although generally safe, they are not free of complications, and local incidence remains poorly documented. Our objective was to describe the incidence of complications and associated factors in patients requiring TIVC for chemotherapy.

We conducted a retrospective incidence cohort with random sampling of all adult cancer patients who underwent TIVC implantation at a high-complexity hospital in Cali between 2017–2022. We calculated cumulative incidence of pneumothorax, hemothorax, hematoma, infection, sepsis, venous thrombosis, and catheter dysfunction, and assessed associated factors with hypothesis testing.

We included 645 patients, mean age 58 years; 67% female. The most frequent underlying malignancies were breast (27.0%), stomach (11.5%), lung (6.0%), ovary (5.6%), and colon cancer (5.1%). Most catheters were PowerPort (91%), inserted via the subclavian vein (95%), with reservoirs positioned in the chest (99.2%). Overall complication incidence was 7.8%. The most frequent were bacteremia (2.3%) and local infection (1.9%), followed by venous thrombosis, catheter dysfunction, and pneumothorax (<1% each). A total of 101 catheters (15.7%) were removed: 63% after completion of chemotherapy and 29% due to infection. No factors were identified as significantly associated with increased risk of complications.

The incidence of complications related to TIVC is low. The most common were bacteremia and local infection, the former not associated with catheter insertion. These findings highlight the importance of standardizing surgical technique and maintaining high-quality postoperative device care.