Liver Cancer Treatment: Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy
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Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy for Liver Cancer
Dedicated to innovation, Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) manages one of the only medical centers in the country that offers Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy (IAC) as a liver cancer treatment. The procedure, which sends targeted chemotherapy drugs directly into the liver via the hepatic artery, has been performed at CTCA for many years. While IAC is most commonly used for liver cancer treatment, it may also be used for tumors in the brain, head, face and neck, the pelvis and the pancreas.
In order to obtain a “roadmap” of your personal arterial system, IAC begins with a physician performing an angiogram. This procedure only needs to be performed once, and involves the physician inserting a tiny catheter through the right leg’s femoral artery. Once inserted, a special dye is then injected into the catheter, which allows the physician to view your particular arterial system under a special scope.
An angiogram helps the physician map the location of your hepatic artery, which is the main blood vessel that delivers blood to the liver. IAC liver cancer treatment then proceeds as the physician inserts a line into the hepatic artery, and then infuses the chemotherapy drug or drugs directly into the artery.
The average length of this liver cancer treatment is two to 24 hours. The procedure depends upon a number of factors, including the type of chemotherapy drugs being used, as well as the stage and site of the liver cancer. Patients need to remain flat in bed while the chemotherapy is being delivered into the artery, and should also remain in bed for an additional six hours following treatment to assure no bleeding is present after the catheter is removed.
IAC is generally performed in conjunction with systemic IV chemotherapy once a month for as long as you and your care team at CTCA feel is appropriate for your liver cancer treatment. IAC carries the same side effects and risks as traditional chemotherapy, along with the additional possibility of stomach ulcer development, which is treated with medication should it occur.