CHICAGO, Nov. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- A large-scale, 12-year study has found
that laser ablation with magnetic resonance (MR) guidance is as effective as
traditional surgery in the treatment of liver tumors in some patients. The
study was presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of
North America (RSNA).
In the largest study of its type with the longest follow-up, 839 patients
at the University of Frankfurt in Germany received MR-guided laser-induced
thermotherapy (LITT) for the treatment of liver tumors resulting from
colorectal cancer. Between 1993 and 2005, the researchers treated 2,506 liver
tumors and tracked survival rates to evaluate the long-term results of the
procedure. The average survival rate from the date of diagnosis was 3.8 years,
which compares favorably to survival rates after traditional surgery
(approximately 1.5 to 5.0 years).
In LITT, also known as laser ablation, laser light is used to destroy
tumor tissue. According to the study's lead author, Martin Mack, M.D., laser
ablation has many advantages over other treatment methods.
"Traditional surgical resection has higher morbidity and mortality rates
than laser ablation," said Dr. Mack, an associate professor in the department
of diagnostic and interventional radiology at the University of Frankfurt.
"Laser treatment can be done on an outpatient basis under local anesthesia.
Typically, the patient stays only a couple of hours, instead of a couple of
weeks in the hospital after surgical liver resection," he said.
Laser ablation can be used to treat tumors that occur in both halves of
the liver -- often during the same treatment -- which is practically
impossible in a traditional surgery where typically only the left or right
lobe is resected. If new tumors are found during follow-up exams, it is much
easier to repeat laser treatment than to subject the patient to another open
surgery.
Laser ablation also holds advantages over radiofrequency ablation, another
minimally invasive method of treating liver tumors, because it can be applied
to different parts of the liver simultaneously and can be used with MR
guidance to provide the radiologist with an accurate image of the tumor for
precise targeting throughout the procedure. Radiofrequency ablation can only
treat one tumor at a time and cannot be used with continuous MR monitoring.
Dr. Mack believes that laser combined with MR guidance will have wide-
ranging impact on the treatment of tumors throughout the body, and may one day
replace traditional surgery as the gold standard of treatment.
"Many surgeons are already performing local ablation instead of resection,
because they have already recognized the positive effect of local ablation,"
he said. "I believe that minimally invasive tumor ablation together with
chemotherapy will play the most important role in the treatment of tumors in
the years to come."
Co-authors are Katrin Eichler, M.D., Thomas Lehnert, M.D., Dirk Proschek,
M.D., Joern O. Balzer, M.D., and Thomas J. Vogl, M.D.
RSNA is an association of more than 38,000 radiologists, radiation
oncologists and related scientists committed to promoting excellence in
radiology through education and by fostering research, with the ultimate goal
of improving patient care. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Ill.
AT A GLANCE
-- A 12-year study has found that laser ablation with MR guidance has
comparable results to open surgery in the treatment of liver tumors.
-- Laser ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that uses laser light
to destroy tumors.
-- Laser ablation has lower rates of morbidity and mortality than surgery.
-- Laser ablation can be used to treat multiple tumors simultaneously.
SOURCE Radiological Society of North America
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