The possible role of radiofrequency as complementary treatment of locally advanced gastric cancer.
OBJECTIVE
The prognosis of locally advanced gastric cancer (T3-T4) is bad. The presence of lymph nodes (N3-N4) or haematogenous metastases (liver, lung) gets worse the evolution; principally the hepatic malignancies are cause of scarce survival. The possible use of a palliative treatment as radiofrequency ablation (the good results are note about the treatment of hepatic malignancies by colo-rectal cancer) is reported in recent series. Therefore we decide to use radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of hepatic metastases by gastric cancer, difficulty treated surgically.


METHODS
From January 2001 to December 2002, 25 patients affected by hepatic metastases underwent to radiofrequency thermal ablation, 2 of them were affected by gastric adenocarcinoma. Case 1: A.P., 58 year-old man, one year before underwent to subtotal gastric resection according to Billroth II. After repeated postoperative chemotherapy cycles, he presented metastases at IV hepatic segment. The patient underwent to percutaneous radiofrequency ablation. The control CT scan confirmed metastasis disappearance. After three months, a partial recurrence was treated by the alcoholization. Three months after, we observed marked jaundice for multiple diffused metastases, followed by the exitus. Case 2: B.G., 63 year-old man, with advanced gastric adenocarcinoma (T4) at the pylorus and hepatic metastasis at IV segment. The patient underwent to gastrojejunostomy and to intraoperative radiofrequency ablation. Ultrasonography and CT scan controls were performed before discharge. The patient didn't undergo to successive controls. After 7 months, the patient returned with marked jaundice for diffused hepatic metastases; he refused any treatment, and then he died one month after.


CONCLUSIONS
Our preliminary results don't show complications related to the intra and peri-operative radiofrequency, with an important increase of the mean survival. The results, limited by poor experience, may indicate the complementary role of the radiofrequency in the palliative treatment of the hepatic metastases by advanced gastric cancer, difficulty treated surgically.
Carditello
A
A
Oncologia Medica, Servizio di Ecografia Dipartimento di discipline Chirurgiche Generali e Speciali.
Scisca
C
C
Stilo
F
F
Parisi
A
A
Basile
M
M
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D010166:Palliative Care; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*