Abstract
To assess the feasibility and safety of percutaneous microwave ablation of the lung in rabbits, percutaneous puncture and lung microwave ablation were performed in seven New Zealand white rabbits under computed tomography (CT) guidance. Technical feasibility and complications were evaluated. Two rabbits were sacrificed immediately and gross and microscopic pathology was analyzed. The remaining rabbits received CT scans 1 week and 3 months later. CT scans showed the ablation size was 1.1 ~ 1.6 cm immediately after ablation. The lesions shrank slightly 1 week later. After 3 months, the ablation lesions involuted significantly and even disappeared. Mild pneumothorax was found in 2 rabbits but resolved spontaneously 1 week later. Histologic changes in the microwave lesions were observed which were characterized by the central necrosis and edema of surrounding tissues. It is feasible and safe to perform CT-guided percutaneous microwave ablation of the lung in rabbits. Although further study is still required; microwave ablation can be used as a minimally invasive and effective therapeutic technique in patients with lung tumors. Key words: Lung, computed tomography, microwave ablation.
Highlights
Lung cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, and the current therapies include surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy (Fry et al, 1999; Hsu et al, 1996; Robert et al, 1999; Machtay and Friedberg, 1997)
Under the computed tomography (CT) guidance, the antenna was placed in an appropriate position in the pulmonary parenchyma to prevent damage to other organs
The cells in a hypoxia environment with limited blood supply such as those in the center of necrotic tumors may be resistant to chemotherapy and externalbeam radiation therapy but more sensitive to thermal ablation because heat increases the sensitivity under the hypoxic condition and heat dissipation decreased due to poor perfusion (Dupuy et al, 2002, 2001)
Summary
Lung cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, and the current therapies include surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy (Fry et al, 1999; Hsu et al, 1996; Robert et al, 1999; Machtay and Friedberg, 1997). Surgical treatment is frequently limited in clinical practice due to concomitant chronic obstructive broncho-pneumopathy and/or other associated diseases (Downey, 1999). Under this condition, minimally invasive treatments often receive great attention as is happening in thermal ablation which includes radiofrequency ablation (RFA), microwave ablation (MA), laser ablation (LA), etc. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a well-established modality in the treatment of unresectable liver tumors (Higgins and Berger, 2006) and recently, several authors have evaluated RFA for the treatment of primary and metastatic lung cancer (Lencioni et al, 2004).
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