Transvenous Pulmonary Chemoembolization and Optional Microwave Ablation for Colorectal Lung Metastases

Abstract

(1) Purpose: To evaluate tumor response and survival of patients with colorectal pulmonary metastases treated by transvenous pulmonary chemoembolization (TPCE) alone with palliative intent or TPCE followed by microwave ablation (MWA) with potentially curative intent. (2) Material and methods: A total of 164 patients (64 women and 100 men; mean age: 61.8 ± 12.7 years) with unresectable colorectal lung metastases and not responding to systemic chemotherapy, who either received repetitive TPCE (Group A) or TPCE followed by MWA (Group B), were retrospectively enrolled. The revised response evaluation criteria in solid tumors were used to assess treatment response in Group A. The oncological response in Group B was divided into local tumor progression (LTP) and intrapulmonary distant recurrence (IDR) after MWA. (3) Results: The 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-year survival rates were 70.4%, 41.4%, 22.3%, and 5%, respectively, for all patients. In Group A; the rates of stable disease; progressive disease; and partial response were at 55.4%, 41.9%, and 2.7%, respectively. The rates of LTP and IDR were 3.8%, and 63.5%, respectively, in Group B. Conclusion: TPCE is an effective treatment for colorectal lung metastases, which can be performed alone or combined with MWA.