It's incredible to reflect on how far we've come since I first integrated microwave ablation (MWA) into my practice two decades ago. Over the years, we've seen significant advancements in both the technology behind MWA devices and our understanding of the best patient profiles and techniques to achieve optimal outcomes.
Back in 2004, we embarked on a pivotal study to determine the safety and feasibility of MWA for treating unresectable liver cancer. At that time, only 7% of patients were treated laparoscopically, with the remaining patients evenly divided between open and percutaneous approaches. Our five-year data confirmed that microwave ablation is a safe and effective method for treating unresectable hepatic tumors, boasting a low rate of local recurrence and establishing MWA as a next-generation ablative technique for hepatic malignancies.
In a multi-institutional analysis, we found that patients with tumors larger than 3 cm demonstrated a higher likelihood of early recurrence, regardless of tumor histology. Additionally, our research showed that combining ablation with resection offered survival rates comparable to those achieved through two-stage hepatectomy, but with significantly less morbidity for both primary and metastatic disease.
At this point in 2024 at our institution 95% of our surgical ablations are done laparoscopically. At our institution it has become a critical surgical skill that is taught in our fellowship.
More recently, my focus has shifted towards immuno-oncology. Our 2022 publication on human intratumoral immunotherapy laid the groundwork for my ongoing phase two study: “A Randomized Phase 2 Study to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of IP-001 as Adjuvant Therapy in Participants with Hepatocellular Carcinoma after Complete Radiological Response following Surgical Resection and Local Ablation or Local Ablation Alone."
Below are links to the following article if you are interested in reading any or feel free to message me directly.
Kommentare