Liver Cancer
Copyright ©2005 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Mar 14, 2005; 11(10): 1426-1432
Published online Mar 14, 2005. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v11.i10.1426
Comparison between combination therapy of percutaneous ethanol injection and radiofrequency ablation and radiofrequency ablation alone for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma
Kazutaka Kurokohchi, Seishiro Watanabe, Tsutomu Masaki, Naoki Hosomi, Yoshiaki Miyauchi, Takashi Himoto, Yasuhiko Kimura, Seiji Nakai, Akihiro Deguchi, Hirohito Yoneyama, Shuhei Yoshida, Shigeki Kuriyama
Kazutaka Kurokohchi, Seishiro Watanabe, Tsutomu Masaki, Naoki Hosomi, Yoshiaki Miyauchi, Takashi Himoto, Yasuhiko Kimura, Seiji Nakai, Akihiro Deguchi, Hirohito Yoneyama, Shuhei Yoshida, Shigeki Kuriyama, Third Department of Internal Medicine, Kagawa University School of Medicine, 1750-1 Ikenobe, Miki-cho, Kita-gun, Kagawa 761-0793, Japan
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Shigeki Kuriyama, Third Department of Internal Medicine, Kagawa University School of Medicine, 1750-1 Ikenobe, Miki-cho, Kita-gun, Kagawa 761-0793, Japan. skuriyam@med.kagawa-u.ac.jp
Telephone: +81-878-91-2156 Fax: +81-878-91-2158
Received: August 17, 2004
Revised: August 18, 2004
Accepted: October 18, 2004
Published online: March 14, 2005
Abstract

AIM: In the present study, the characteristics of PEI-RFA treatment were further elucidated by analyzing the relationship between the volume of coagulated necrosis and the energy requirement for ablation or the amount of ethanol injected into HCC.

METHODS: The volume of coagulated necrosis, total energy requirement and energy requirement for coagulation of per unit volume were examined in the groups of PEI-RFA and RFA alone using the Cool-tip RF system.

RESULTS: The results showed that the volume of coagulated necrosis induced was significantly larger in PEI-RFA group than in routine RFA group, when the total energy administered was comparable in both groups. In PEI-RFA, enlargement of coagulated necrosis was admitted in 3 dimensions and the amount of energy requirement per unit volume of coagulated necrosis was negatively correlated with the amount of ethanol injected into HCC.

CONCLUSION: These results suggest that, compared to RFA alone, PEI-RFA enables to induce comparable coagulated necrosis with smaller energy requirement, and that PEI-RFA is likely to be less invasive than RFA alone irrespective of inducing enhanced coagulated necrosis. Thus, simple prior injection of ethanol may make RFA treatment more effective and less invasive for the treatment of patients with HCC.

Keywords: Combination therapy; Percutaneous ethanol injection; Radiofrequency ablation; Energy requirement