Radio-Frequency Ablation (RFA) Offers New Hope for Patients with Inoperable Kidney and Liver Tumors
A new, non-surgical procedure called radio-frequency ablation (RFA) offers new hope for patients with inoperable kidney and liver tumors. RFA uses heat to “vaporize”
Peter J. Julien M.D., chief of Thoracic Imaging and director of the Radio-frequency Ablation Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s S. Mark Taper Foundation Imaging Center, Julien, an interventional radiologist, is one of the pioneers of RFA.
The procedure requires only local anesthesia and avoids the scars and complications associated with traditional open surgery. Because RFA involves no cutting, it is also a viable option for individuals previously thought to be too old or sick to withstand surgery.
During RFA, an interventional radiologist carefully guides an ablation needle into the center of the tumor using imaging techniques such as ultrasound or CT scan. The probe is connected to a radio-frequency generator that delivers alternating electrical current (radio-frequency energy) to the tumor producing heat up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. This causes cancerous cells to shrink and die, but healthy tissue is spared because the probe cools as it is removed.
Typically, surgical removal of kidney tumors (nephrectomy), which has been the standard of care for kidney cancers, results in hospital admissions of 7 to 10 days and postoperative recovery time of 6 to 8 weeks. By comparison, RFA is not only minimally invasive with a short recovery time, but it also allows for the kidney to be preserved. RFA also avoids postoperative complications such as pain, pneumonia, injury to the organs and scars.
Although the procedure is new and more data are needed, it appears to result in survival rates that are comparable to those of radical or partial nephrectomies. Beyond that, it may well offer hope for patients with liver cancer.
Additional information is available at http://www.cedars-sinai.edu.
Source: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Filed under Cancer, Health, Kidney
