WEDNESDAY, June 18 (HealthDay News) -- A minimally invasive
procedure normally used to treat liver cancer also holds promise
for lung cancer patients, according to a new study.
In the study, expected to be published in the July edition of
The Lancet Oncology, 88 percent of lung cancer patients
responded well to treatment with percutaneous image-guided
radiofrequency ablation (RFA). RFA is performed in less than an
hour and is a non-surgical procedure that targets large tumors with
no harm to surrounding healthy tissue. After one year, 70 percent
of patients survived at least one year with few side effects; none
that impaired lung function, the researchers report.
As alternative to surgery in difficult liver cancer patients,
RFA has proven successful, with no negative effect on quality of
life, and it requires only a short hospital stay.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and
women. Surgery is the standard treatment for early-stage,
non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which constitutes about 80
percent of most malignant lung tumors. Unfortunately not all
patients are eligible due to other health reasons. The
alternatives, radiotherapy or chemotherapy, do not have good
survival rates.
The study, conducted at Cisanello University Hospital, in Pisa,
Italy, involved 106 patients with malignant lung tumors that were
smaller than 5 cm in diameter. Thirty-three patients had NSCLC; 53,
metastatic lung cancer from the colon; and 20, metastatic lung
cancer from other sites in the body. All the patients had been
turned down for surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
The major post-RFA complications were pneumothorax (27
instances) and pleural effusion (4 instances) which needed
drainage.
"Our study shows that radiofrequency ablation can be completed
successfully in high percentage of patients with small lung tumors.
...The safety profile of the procedure was also acceptable, with no
mortality or life-threatening complications associated with it. ...
A randomized controlled trial comparing radiofrequency ablation
versus standard treatment options is now warranted to prove the
clinical benefit of this approach," the researchers wrote.
More information
The American Lung Association has more about
lung cancer.
