title: Ablation Strategies for Locally Advanced Pancreatic Cancer.
abstract: With the advent of novel and somewhat effective chemotherapy against pancreas cancer, several groups developed a new interest on locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC). Unresectable tumors constitute up to 80% of pancreatic cancer (PC) at the time of diagnosis and are associated with a 5-year overall survival of less than 5%. To control those tumors locally, with perhaps improved patients survival, significant advances were made over the last 2 decades in the development of ablation methods including cryoablation, radiofrequency ablation, microwave ablation, high intensity focused ultrasound and irreversible electroporation (IRE). Many suggested a call for caution for possible severe or lethal complications in using such techniques on the pancreas. Most fears were on the heating or freezing of the pancreas, while non-thermal ablation (IRE) could offer safer approaches. The multimodal therapies along with high-resolution imaging guidance have created some enthusiasm toward ablation for LAPC. The impact of ablation techniques on primarily non-resectable PC remains, however, unclear.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation, Swiss Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary (HPB) Center, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Linecker
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pfammatter
authors.forename: Patryk
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kambakamba
authors.forename: Michelle L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: DeOliveira
mesh_terms: D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000379:methods*; D059186:Chemoradiotherapy, Adjuvant; D003452:Cryosurgery; D018274:Electroporation; D006801:Humans; D008872:Microwaves / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*