Assessment of Response to Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization with Doxorubicin-eluting Microspheres: Tumor Biology and Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence in a 5-year Transplant Cohort.

Purpose To assess response to transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) based on immune markers and tumor biology in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who were bridged to liver transplantation, and to produce an optimized pretransplantation model for posttransplantation recurrence risk. Materials and Methods In this institutional review board-approved HIPAA-compliant retrospective analysis, 93 consecutive patients (73 male, 20 female; mean age, 59.6 years; age range, 23-72 years) underwent TACE with doxorubicin-eluting microspheres (DEB) (hereafter, DEB-TACE) and subsequently underwent transplantation over a 5-year period from July 7, 2011, to May 16, 2016. DEB-TACE response was based on modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors. Imaging responses and posttransplantation recurrence were compared with demographics, liver function, basic immune markers, treatment dose, and tumor morphology. Treatment response and recurrence were analyzed with uni- and multivariate statistics, as well as internal validation and propensity score matching of factors known to affect recurrence to assess independent effects of DEB-TACE response on recurrence. Results Low-grade tumors (grade 0, 1, or 2) demonstrated a favorable long-term treatment response in 87% of patients (complete response, 49%; partial response, 38%; stable disease [SD] or local disease progression [DP], 13%) versus 33% of high-grade tumors (grade 3 or 4) (complete response, 0%; partial response, 33%; SD or DP, 67%) (P < .001). Of the 93 patients who underwent treatment, 82 were followed-up after transplantation (mean duration, 757 days). Recurrence occurred in seven (9%) patients (mean time after transplantation, 635 days). Poor response to DEB-TACE (SD or DP) was present in 86% of cases and accounted for 35% of all patients with SD or DP (P < .001). By using only variables routinely available prior to liver transplantation, a validated model of posttransplantation recurrence risk was produced with a concordance statistic of 0.83. The validated model shows sensitivity of 83.6%, specificity of 82.6%, and negative predictive value of 98.4%, which are pessimistic estimates. Conclusion Response to DEB-TACE is correlated with tumor biology and patients at risk for posttransplantation recurrence, and it may be associated with HCC recurrence after liver transplantation. © RSNA, 2017 Online supplemental material is available for this article.

[A validation study of the German version of the Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI)]. / Eine Validierungsstudie der deutschen Version des Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI).

Hypersexuality is characterized by recurrent and intense sexual fantasies, sexual urges, or sexual behaviors resulting in clinically significant personal distress or impairment in social, occupa-tional, or other important areas of functioning. The Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI, Reid et al., 2011) is a 3-factor measure (coping, control and consequences) developed to assess hypersexual behaviour. The aim of the present study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the German version of the HBI. In a sample consisting of 1 749 men and women the questionnaire was used as part of an online survey. The questionnaire showed good reliability and validity. A confirmatory factor analysis supported the 3-factor structure of the original English version. The results and potential benefit of the HBI in research and clinical practice are discussed.

Interventional Radiology Workforce Shortages Affecting Small and Rural Practices: A Report of the SIR/ACR Joint Task Force on Recruitment and Retention of Interventional Radiologists to Small and Rural Practices.

Radiology practices characterized as small and rural are challenged to recruit and retain interventional radiologists. Lack of access to interventional radiologic services results in a failure to meet the needs of patients, hospitals, and other community stakeholders. Acknowledging this challenge, the ACR's Commission on General, Small, Emergency and/or Rural Practice and Commission on Interventional and Cardiovascular Imaging and the Society of Interventional Radiology partnered to establish a joint task force to study this issue and identify strategies the ACR and the Society of Interventional Radiology should take to improve small and rural practice recruitment and retention of interventional radiologists. This report describes the deliberations and recommendations of the task force.

Intraarterial Liver-Directed Therapies: The Role of Interventional Oncology.

BACKGROUND: Since the early 1990s, the minimally invasive image-guided therapies used in interventional oncology to treat hepatocellular carcinoma have continued to evolve. Additionally, the range of applications has been expanded to the treatment of hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer, neuroendocrine tumors, cholangiocarcinoma, breast cancer, melanoma, and sarcoma. METHODS: We searched the literature to identify publications from 1990 to the present on various image-guided intraarterial therapies and their efficacy, as well as their role in the management of primary and secondary liver malignancies. RESULTS: Chemoembolization and radioembolization are considered a standard of care in treating, delaying progression of disease, and downstaging to bridge to liver transplantation. Progression-free survival and overall survival outcomes are promising in patients with colorectal cancer and neuroendocrine tumors with liver metastases. Applications in the treatment of hepatic metastases from cholangiocarcinoma, breast cancer, melanoma, and sarcoma also show potential. CONCLUSION: Interventional oncology and its image-guided intraarterial therapies continue to gain recognition as treatment options for primary and secondary liver cancers. Growing evidence supports their role as a standard of care alongside medical oncology, surgery, and radiation oncology.

Interlaminar epidural steroid injection for degenerative lumbar spinal canal stenosis: does the intervertebral level of performance matter?

BACKGROUND: Interlaminar epidural steroid injections (ILESIs) are commonly employed in the management of patients with symptomatic degenerative lumbar spinal canal stenosis despite little experimental evidence to guide technique optimization. One untested performance parameter is the intervertebral level at which the ILESI should be performed for maximum patient relief. METHODS: This study randomized patients with symptomatic degenerative lumbar spinal canal stenosis to receive an ILESI at the level of maximal spinal canal stenosis or at a normal/less stenotic intervertebral site 2 intervertebral levels cephalad to the level of maximal stenosis. Pain with ambulation and Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire scores were collected prior to the procedure and at 1-, 4-, and 12-week follow-ups. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients were enrolled. Thirty patients (Group 1) received an ILESI at the level of maximal stenosis; 27 patients (Group 2) received an ILESI at a less stenotic level. The mean baseline preprocedural maximal pain with ambulation and disability scores for the 2 groups were not significantly different (P=0.94 and P=0.13, respectively). Patients' pain with ambulation scores were significantly lower in Group 1 compared to Group 2 at 1 and 4 weeks postinjection, but they were not significantly lower at 12 weeks (1 week, P=0.045; 4 weeks, P=0.049; 12 weeks, P=0.08). The mean Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire scores at 1, 4, and 12 weeks postinjection were significantly lower in Group 1 as compared to Group 2 (P=0.001, P=0.009, P=0.003, respectively). CONCLUSION: Results suggest that patient symptom improvement is optimized when the ILESI is performed at the intervertebral level of maximal stenosis.

Renal artery embolization for the treatment of renal artery pseudoaneurysm following partial nephrectomy.

BACKGROUND: Renal artery pseudoaneurysm following open, laparoscopic, or robotic-assisted nephrectomies is a relatively rare but serious complication. Selective renal artery embolization is an interventional radiologic procedure that can be used to successfully treat this postoperative complication. CASE REPORT: We present 2 cases of renal artery pseudoaneurysm, both of which were successfully treated by renal artery embolization, and briefly describe the technical aspects of and clinical indications for this angiographic procedure. CONCLUSION: Unlike other imaging modalities, angiography shows the anatomic location of a pseudoaneurysm so the interventional radiologist can quickly treat this potentially life-threatening condition.