Open AccessGastrointestinal tract injuries after thermal ablative therapies for hepatocellular carcinoma: A case report and review of the literature
Author(s) -
Teresa Marzia Rogger,
Andrea Michielan,
Sandro Sferrazza,
Cecilia Pravadelli,
Luisa Moser,
F. Agugiaro,
G Vettori,
Sonia Seligmann,
Elettra Merola,
Marcello Maida,
Francesco Antonio Ciarleglio,
Alberto Brolese,
G. De Pretis
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
world journal of gastroenterology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.427
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 2219-2840
pISSN - 1007-9327
DOI - 10.3748/wjg.v26.i35.5375
Subject(s) - ablative case , hepatocellular carcinoma , medicine , gastrointestinal tract , carcinoma , medline , oncology , surgery , gastroenterology , general surgery , radiation therapy , biology , biochemistry
Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA) represent the standard of care for patients with early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are unfit for surgery. The incidence of reported adverse events is low, ranging from 2.4% to 13.1% for RFA and from 2.6% to 7.5% for MWA. Gastrointestinal tract (GIT) injury is even more infrequent (0.11%), but usually requires surgery with an unfavourable prognosis. Due to its low incidence and the retrospective nature of the studies, the literature reporting this feared complication is heterogeneous and in many cases lacks information on tumour characteristics, comorbidities and treatment approaches.