Assessment of single shot ethanol injection in treatment of HCC

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this work was to study the efficiency of percutaneous single shot ethanol injection [PEI] in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma [HCC] under general anesthesia. Twenty-three patients having 29 nodules of HCC were included in this study. They were followed up periodically for 18 months. Lesions were not more than 3 in number and the size of each nodule did not exceed 5 cm. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to Child classification A or B, respectively. Single shot US guided PEI of the tumors was done under general anesthesia [Deprivan]. The end point was complete opacification of the tumor. Measurement of serum alpha fetoprotein [AFP], prothrombin time and concentration [PT and PC] and alkaline phosphatase was done before and after PEI. Power duplex imaging [PDI], contrast enhanced CT and FNAB were also done before and after PEI to assess the vascularity and viability of the tumor, hence the therapeutic effect of single shot PEI. Fine needle aspiration biopsy [FNAB] was done few weeks after the procedure to confirm the tumor death. The study concluded that PEI is an effective and cheap non surgical method of treatment of small HCC that could be done in a single session under general anesthesia