Fact Sheet: Ablation

Tumor Ablation

During ablation procedures, interventional radiologists use heat, cold or substances such as alcohol to kill cancer cells by injecting them through catheters directly to the site of the tumor.

One relatively new ablation technique called radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has good results at controlling the spread of cancer in some patients. RFA typically treat cancers than cannot be removed by surgeons because of their size/location or because the patient is not healthy enough to have open surgery. RFA is primarily used to treat cancer in the liver, but it is being studied for use in the kidney, adrenal glands, lung, bone and prostate.

• Although RFA is not a cure, there are several benefits of its use:
• Provide a local treatment option when surgery is not possible or too risky.
• Shrink larger tumors to a size that makes it possible to remove them surgically or by transplantation.
• Releive pain and other side effects to reduce suffering and improve the quality of life for people with cancer.
• Treat small tumors in conjunction with surgery of a large mass elsewhere in the liver.

Explaining The Procedure

During the technique, an interventional radiologist views the liver tumor through ultrasound. Once located, the doctor makes a small nick in the skin through which a needle is passed. Through the tip of of the needle, the doctor extends several prongs into the tumor. The prongs look like an umbrella with no cover material. The prongs allow the doctor to deliver radiofrequency energy to heat and "burn" the cancerous cells—destroying the tumor. Lasers and microwave energy are other techniques that are being studied to deliver heat to tumors. 

In a similar technique, called cryoablation, probes are inserted into the tumor to freeze and kill cancer cells. How Radiofrequency Ablation Works

The radiofrequency energy is sent to the prongs which deliver a precise round ball of heat throughout the tumor killing the cancerous cells with little risk to adjacent normal structures. The dead tumor tissue shrinks and slowly forms a scar.

What You Can Expect After Treatment

After the procedure, you will receive prescriptions for pain and possibly nausea. Most RFA procedures can be done as an outpatient or as a brief overnight stay. Once home, you may experience pain for one or two days and there may be a low grade fever. Most patients experience few significant side effects beyond these, but depending on the size of the tumor treated and its location, some patients may be fatigued or tired.

You should be able to resume all normal activities within a day or two, depending on how you are feeling. If any symptoms recur or become worse instead of improving, notify your doctor.

Eventually, you will get a follow-up CT or MRI scan, as well as blood tests, to determine the size of the treated tumor and how well the RFA worked. CT and MRI scans will continue every three months thereafter to determine how much the tumor ultimately shrunk. RFA frequently may be repeated to treat all lesions or all parts of a larger tumor. Your doctor will keep you apprised of the need for additional treatment.

^{Information provided by the Society of Interventional Radiology, www.SIRweb.org © 2005}