# Talc (intrapleural)

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/talc-sclerosant/  
OnCo record `talc-sclerosant` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Sterile talc is puffed or instilled into the chest cavity after fluid is drained to make the lung stick to the chest wall, stopping cancer-related fluid (malignant pleural effusion) from building up again.

## Summary

Sclerosol intrapleural aerosol was approved by the FDA in December 1997 and sterile talc powder in 2003 to decrease the recurrence of malignant pleural effusion in symptomatic patients after drainage; talc has been the most effective pleurodesis agent in comparative trials and meta-analyses for decades. Poudrage at thoracoscopy and bedside slurry through a chest drain give similar success (TAPPS trial), and indwelling pleural catheters, with or without talc instilled through them (IPC-PLUS), are the main alternative for patients with trapped lung or short prognosis. Graded, large-particle talc is used to avoid the acute respiratory distress syndrome reported with small-particle preparations. Fever and chest pain after the procedure are expected.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: approved
- Last checked: 2026-09-10
- Also known as: Talc slurry; Talc poudrage
- Tags: nci-list; supportive
- Brand: Sclerosol / Sterile Talc Powder / Steritalc
- Modality: Sclerosing agent (intrapleural powder or aerosol)
- Mechanism: Sterile asbestos-free magnesium silicate that provokes an inflammatory pleuritis and fibrosis, sealing the visceral and parietal pleura together so that fluid can no longer accumulate.
- Approvals: US 1997: Prevention of recurrence of malignant pleural effusion after drainage (Sclerosol aerosol; sterile powder 2003)

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleurodesis
- US label (DailyMed): https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/search.cfm?labeltype=all&query=talc
- NCI drug page: https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/drugs/talc

## Connected records

- cancers: [HR-positive / HER2-negative breast cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/breast-hr-positive/), [Mesothelioma](https://onco.cc/cancers/mesothelioma/), [Non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/nsclc/), [Ovarian cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/ovarian/)
- technologies: [Early integrated palliative care](https://onco.cc/technologies/palliative-care/)
- trials: [Bleomycin, Doxycycline, or Talc in Treating Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusions](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00002872/), [Talc in Treating Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusion](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00002622/), [Video-Assisted Surgery or Talc Pleurodesis in Treating Patients With Malignant Mesothelioma](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00821860/)

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