RFA Eases Symptoms of Inoperable Lung Cancer

A pair of studies has shown that radiofrequency ablation (RFA), guided by computed tomography (CT), is effective in easing the symptoms of inoperable lung cancer, while changes in the size of the tumor as shown on CT determines whether that ablation was successful.

Researchers from S. Sebastiano Hospital (Caserta, Italy) analyzed 33 patients with malignant lung cancer who could not undergo surgery and opted for CT-guided RFA instead. No major complications occurred and all sessions were deemed successful at follow-up CT.

The study was prompted by the feeling that an alternative to the usual therapies for lung cancer was strongly needed. "We see too many lung cancer patients who, inoperable for a number of different reasons, are left with few chances to obtain an effective palliation,” noted lead author Guiseppe Belfiore, M.D. "For sure, RFA allows a better quality of life for many inoperable patients.”

In the second study, researchers from National University Hospital (Chonbuk, South Korea) determined that pattern enhancement--a difference in contrast between a tumor and the surrounding tissue--and changes in tumor size were the most important factors in judging the success of RFA for lung tumors on CT. They analyzed 21 patients who had undergone CT-guided RF, nine who had complete ablations and 12 who had partial ablations. For the former group, the researchers found tumors were without any enhancement on short-term follow-up CT and that the size of the lesions had decreased by 40% after 12 months. For the partially ablated group, the tumors were enhanced to various degrees short-term and the tumor size had increased after six months.

The studies were published in the October 2004 issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.




Related Links:
Chonbuk National University Hospital