Microwave hepatic ablation: Initial experience of safety and efficacy

Abstract

Microwave (MW) ablation is a new treatment modality for hepatic tumors in the United States. Past concerns had been related to small ablation size and efficacy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety, operative time, rate of complete ablation, and local recurrence. A prospective Phase II study of MW of hepatic tumors from 1/2004 to 10/2004. MW ablation was utilized to treat 67 hepatic tumors in 20 patients, with 13 men, 7 women, with a median age of 65 years (range 46-83 years). Tumor types, metastatic colorectal cancer (n = 9), hepatocellular (n = 5), metastatic carcinoid (n = 2), and one patient each with metastatic ovarian, breast, and gastric. MW treated a median of two tumors (range 1-13) per patient, median size of 3 cm (range 1.5-4.5 cm). Total median ablation time was 10 min (range 5-40 min). The overall ablation success at the discharge CT of the abdomen was 100%. Nine patients underwent additional procedures, including partial hepatectomy, colectomy, and gastrectomy. There were no perioperative deaths, while perioperative complications occurred in five patients-none of them related to hepatic ablation. After median follow-up of 19 months there has been one ablation recurrence. MW ablation represents a reliable, efficient, and safe technique to perform hepatic tumor ablation. The ability to perform multiple ablations simultaneously allows for a more efficient surgical procedure.