Review of Intra-Arterial Therapies for Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastasis

The liver is frequently the most common site of metastasis in patients with colorectal cancer, occurring in more than 50% of patients. While surgical resection remains the only potential curative option, it is only eligible in 15–20% of patients at presentation. In the past two decades, major advances in modern chemotherapy and personalized biological agents have improved overall survival in patients with unresectable liver metastasis. For patients with dominant liver metastatic disease or limited extrahepatic disease, liver-directed intra-arterial therapies such as hepatic arterial chemotherapy infusion, chemoembolization and radioembolization are treatment strategies which are increasingly being considered to improve local tumor response and to reduce systemic side effects. Currently, these therapies are mostly used in the salvage setting in patients with chemo-refractory disease. However, their use in the first-line setting in conjunction with systemic chemotherapy as well as to a lesser degree, in a neoadjuvant setting, for downstaging to resection have also been investigated. Furthermore, some clinicians have considered these therapies as a temporizing tool for local disease control in patients undergoing a chemotherapy ‘holiday’ or acting as a bridge in patients between different lines of systemic treatment. This review aims to provide an update on the current evidence regarding liver-directed intra-arterial treatment strategies and to discuss potential trends for the future.

Safe and Successful Yttrium-90 Resin Microsphere Radioembolization in a Heavily Pretreated Patient with Chemorefractory Colorectal Liver Metastases after Biliary Stent Placement above the Papilla

We report a case of safe and successful yttrium-90 resin microsphere radioembolization in a patient with a long history of multiple recurrent colon cancer hepatic metastases progressing after hepatic resections, hepatic arterial chemotherapy, and multiple regimens of systemic chemotherapy. One month prior to radioembolization, a biliary stent was placed above the level of the ampulla to relieve tumor-related biliary obstruction and normalize bilirubin levels.

Outcome of patients with colorectal liver metastasis: Analysis of 1,613 consecutive cases.

e14000 Background: To evaluate the long-time outcome of patients with colorectal liver metastasis (CRLM) undergoing different types of therapy and identify factors associated with prognosis. Methods: From 2000 to 2010, a total of 1,613 patients with CRLM were identified in Zhongshan Hospital. Clinicopathological and outcome data were collected and analyzed by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Of 1,613 patients the median survival was 23.1 months and the five-year survival rate was 23%. Synchronous liver metastasis (SLM), female, grade III-IV, T4 and N + of primary tumor, bilobar disease, number of liver metastases ≥ 4, size of largest liver metastases ≥ 5 cm, CEA ≥5 ng/ml and CA19-9 ≥ 37u/ml were the predictors of adverse outcome using univariate analysis. The median survival and five-year survival rate for patients after resection of liver metastases was 49.8 months and 47%, compared with 22.2 months and 19% for those after systemic chemotherapy alone, 19.0 months and 13% for those after hepatic arterial chemotherapy alone, 22.8 months and 10% for those after systemic chemotherapy combined with hepatic arterial chemotherapy, and 28.5 months and 6% for those after local regional treatment alone (p< 0.010). In addition, patients without treatment had the poorest survival rate (9.6 months and 0%). 64 initially unresectable patients underwent surgery after convertible therapy and had a median survival of 36.9 months and a five-year survival of 30%, which was better than that of unresectable patients who did not undergo surgery (18.2 months and 10%). By multivariate analysis, SLM, poorly differentiated primary tumor, number of liver metastases ≥ 4, size of largest liver metastases ≥ 5 cm, and no surgical treatment of liver metastases were found to be independent predictors of poor survival. Conclusions: Patients with CRLM could get long-term survival benefit from different types of therapy, and resection of resectable and initially unresectable liver metastases was the optimal strategy. The disease-free interval from primary to liver metastases, the differentiation of the primary tumor, the number and size of liver metastases and the types of therapy used to treat liver metastases were independent prognostic factors.