Radiofrequency Ablation
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Radiofrequency Hyperthermic Tumor Ablation (RFA) technology is helping surgeons and radiologists at Cancer Treatment Centers of America "melt away" cancerous liver tumors, often eliminating the risks and discomfort associated with surgery. This is good news for many patients with liver cancer, because in eighty percent of cases, surgical removal of the tumors isn't an option as the procedure would destroy adequate liver function.
Used at only a handful of medical centers nationwide, the technology sends electrical energy to liver tumors through a special catheter. Once heated, the cancer cells usually die within 15 minutes. Using RFA, experts at CTCA are able to treat localized cancer in the liver that hasn't responded to chemotherapy or can't be removed safely, or where previous surgeries have been performed and there's a recurrence of the cancer. We can actually use microwave technology to ‘cook' the tumor in patients with certain types of liver cancer.
The procedure was approved by the FDA in 1996 for use in the treatment of liver cancer as well as tumors that have spread to the liver from a separate primary site, such as the breast, colon or lung.
Your CTCA care team may use RFA if you have liver tumors less than 5 centimeters in surface area. It may be used to treat multiple lesions during the course of your treatment. It can either be applied during open surgical procedure or percutaneously (through the skin), and is positioned within the center of the tumor(s) using ultrasound guidance.
You probably won’t need full anesthesia for the percutaneous procedure. A local anesthetic and conscious sedation can be used for your comfort and peace of mind.
Once the catheter's tip is positioned, your surgeon or radiologist will release two to four thin steel prongs, resembling the ribs of an umbrella. The catheter then generates radiowaves, much like those used in microwave ovens.
In some cases this technique may offer you faster, more targeted liver cancer treatment with fewer side effects and shorter hospital stays compared with standard therapies.
Other options for patients with inoperable liver cancer include chemotherapy, administered either intravenously or via the hepatic artery; ablation through an ethanol injection; cryotherapy (freezing); and high-energy ultrasound ablation.
While these procedures may be beneficial for some people, each carries some risks, including toxicity, bleeding complications, difficulty of application, and/or significant expense. RFA may offer a low-risk alternative to these procedures.