Palliative Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization for Relieving Metastatic Bone Pain due to Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Case Report

Bone metastasis is the third most common extrahepatic metastasis from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), following lung and lymph node metastasis. Although transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) is widely used for the treatment for unresectable HCC in the liver, its effects on bone metastasis from HCC have not been well described in past literature. We report a case of a patient with a metastatic bone lesion from an HCC treated with TACE. After the procedure, the patient's pain and narcotic requirement significantly decreased without major complications.

Carotid Intraplaque Hemorrhage is Associated with Acute Cerebral Ischemic Events and Progression of Stenosis on Magnetic Resonance Imaging

PURPOSE: To investigate the association of carotid intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) with acute cerebral ischemic events and progression of stenosis using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From April 2014 to December 2016, 53 patients underwent carotid plaque MR imaging, including magnetization-prepared rapid acquisition with gradient-echo (MPRAGE) sequence. A total of 66 carotid arteries in 53 patients had carotid stenosis, and they were included in this study. Carotid arteries were classified according to the presence of IPH, the age of hemorrhage, and degree of stenosis. We assessed ipsilateral cerebrovascular event rates and progression of stenosis between the IPH and no-IPH groups. RESULTS: Of the 61 carotid arteries assessed, 34 (56%) had IPH, and 27 (44%) had no IPH. Acute cerebral ischemic events were more frequent in the IPH group (47% vs. 22%, P = 0.045), especially in the < 30%-stenosis group (100% vs. 0%, P = 0.028). However, there was no significant difference in the incidence of ischemic events according to the age of hemorrhage (50% vs. 44%, P = 0.492). Among the 61 carotid arteries, 20 carotid arteries had previously undergone carotid artery imaging and were evaluated for plaque progression. The trend for progression of stenosis favored the IPH group versus the no-IPH group, with a marginal P-value (20% ± 12.7 vs. 9.6% ± 5.7, P = 0.063). CONCLUSION: IPH was associated with an increased incidence of acute ischemic events, especially in the mild-stenosis group and it was also associated with progression of stenosis. Evaluation of the carotid IPH by carotid plaque MR could improve discrimination of carotid plaques that cause ischemic events and progression of stenosis.