Robotic radiation treatment compared to radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of liver metastases from colorectal cancer

This article compares the use of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and a robotic method of treatment using directed radiation to liver metastases from colorectal cancer which have been deemed not suitable for surgical treatment.  The study shows robotic radiation treatment is safe and comparable to RFA, with a trend towards being better in terms of local disease free survival times.

The current gold standard treatment for liver metastases is surgery. Advances in new treatment techniques are however being made and patients not deemed eligible for surgery can now be offered other techniques such as radiofrequency ablation (RFA).  This technique involves guiding a probe to the site of the tumour and heating it using radiofrequency to destroy the tumor cells.

Patients treated with RRS have a small metal marker made from gold placed adjacent to the tumour under local anaesthesia.  These markers are then used by the x-ray machines built into a robotic system to detect the location of the tumour and target the radiation treatment.

This article compared the use of RFA to robotic radiation surgery (RRS). The study included 60 patients all of whom were classified as being not eligible for surgical treatment; 30 patients received RFA and the remaining 30 received RRS treatment.

Results of this study showed that both treatment groups had similar tumor recurrence rates, 67% for RRS treatment and 63% for RFA treatment.  The time before distant recurrence of the cancer was 11.4 months for the RRS treatment group and 7.1 months for those treated with RFA.  There was a statistically significant longer local disease free survival time in patients treated with RRS (34.4 months) compared to those treated with RFA (6 months).

Further studies are needed to determine which of these procedures offers a clear advantage in overall survival.

If you have liver metastases and have been told that it is not surgically treatable, or feel that surgery is not for you, it may be useful to discuss these treatment options with your doctor and find out if they would be available for you.