Osteoplasty, Fixation, and Ablations in Peripheral Bones: It is Time for Interventional Radiologists to Move Forward

Abstract

Bone metastases occur in about 40% of all patients with cancer. This substantial proportion reflects the significant challenge faced by patients and clinicians as well as the need for treatment advancements, particularly since life expectancy has increased due to the introduction of precision medicine. The primary goal of treatment of these patients is to alleviate symptoms while the secondary goal is to maintain or restore patient function. As patients often experience pain with conservative management of this condition, which impacts quality of life and can lead to reduced mobility, depression, and anxiety, interventional radiologists (IRs) have recently been successfully integrated into the standard treatment team alongside surgeons and radiation oncologists. But while minimally invasive procedures such as osteoplasty, fixation, and ablation require techniques and image guidance that IRs master in other organs, they are especially challenging in bones and, to date, evidence to support the practice is limited. This mismatch between the needs of patients and clinical practice highlights the importance of training IRs in these techniques and the need for data analysis. These 2 points form the cornerstone for how osteoplasty, fixation, or ablations will be advocated by our colleagues in surgery or radiation oncology.