Practical Considerations When Choosing Chemoembolization versus Radioembolization for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) and transarterial radioembolization (TARE) are common liver-directed therapies (LDTs) for unresectable HCC. While both deliver intra-arterial treatment directly to the site of the tumor, they differ in mechanisms of action and side effects. Several studies have compared their side effect profile, time to progression, and overall survival data, but often these lack practical considerations when choosing which treatment modality to use. Many factors can impact operator's choice for treatment, and the choice depends on treatment availability, cost, insurance coverage, operator's comfort level, patient-specific factors, tumor location, tumor biology, and disease stage. This review discusses survival data, time to progression data, as well as more practical patient and tumor characteristics for personalized LDT with TACE or TARE.

Thermal Ablation in the Liver: Heat versus Cold-What Is the Role of Cryoablation?

Cryoablation is commonly used in the kidney, lung, breast, and soft tissue, but is an uncommon choice in the liver where radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA) predominate. This is in part for historical reasons due to serious complications that occurred with open hepatic cryoablation using early technology. More current technology combined with image-guided percutaneous approaches has ameliorated these issues and allowed cryoablation to become a safe and effective thermal ablation modality for treating liver tumors. Cryoablation has several advantages over RFA and MWA including the ability to visualize the ice ball, minimal procedural pain, and strong immunomodulatory effects. This article will review the current literature on cryoablation of primary and secondary liver tumors, with a focus on efficacy, safety, and immunogenic potential. Clinical scenarios when it may be more beneficial to use cryoablation over heat-based ablation in the liver, as well as directions for future research, will also be discussed.

Conservative Management of Invasive Placenta Using Combined Prophylactic Internal Iliac Artery Balloon Occlusion and Immediate Postoperative Uterine Artery Embolization.

PURPOSE: The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of combined prophylactic intraoperative internal iliac artery balloon occlusion and postoperative uterine artery embolization in the conservative management (uterine preservation) of women with invasive placenta undergoing scheduled caesarean delivery. METHODS: Ten women (mean age 35 years) with invasive placenta choosing caesarean delivery without hysterectomy had preoperative insertion of internal iliac artery occlusion balloons, intraoperative inflation of the balloons, and immediate postoperative uterine artery embolization with absorbable gelatin sponge. A retrospective review was performed with institutional review board approval. Outcome measures were intraoperative blood loss, transfusion requirement, hysterectomy rate, endovascular complications, surgical complications, and postoperative morbidity. RESULTS: All women had placenta increta or percreta, and concomitant complete placenta previa. Mean gestational age at delivery was 36 weeks. In 6 women the placenta was left undisturbed in the uterus, 2 had partial removal of the placenta, and 2 had piecemeal removal of the whole placenta. Mean estimated blood loss during caesarean delivery was 1.2 L. Only 2 patients (20%) required blood transfusion. There were no intraoperative surgical complications, endovascular complications, maternal deaths, or perinatal deaths. Three women developed postpartum complications necessitating postpartum hysterectomy; the hysterectomy rate was therefore 30% and uterine preservation was successful in 70%. CONCLUSION: Combined bilateral internal iliac artery balloon occlusion and uterine artery embolization may be an effective strategy to control intraoperative blood loss and preserve the uterus in patients with invasive placenta undergoing caesarean delivery.

Planned caesarean hysterectomy versus "conserving" caesarean section in patients with placenta accreta.

OBJECTIVES: Invasive placentation (placenta accreta, increta, or percreta) presents significant challenges at Caesarean section. Caesarean hysterectomy in such circumstances may result in massive blood loss despite surgical expertise. We reviewed two divergent surgical approaches: planned Caesarean hysterectomy versus a "conserving surgery" in which the placenta is left in situ after Caesarean section. METHODS: We conducted a single-centre retrospective review of all patients who delivered with invasive placentation between 2000 and 2009. We included only patients with antenatally diagnosed invasive placentation and planned mode of delivery. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients met the inclusion criteria. Caesarean hysterectomy was planned in 16 patients and conserving surgery in 10. Intraoperative and postoperative complications were comparable in the two groups. Four of 10 patients initially treated by conservative surgery required a subsequent hysterectomy for severe vaginal bleeding, coagulopathy, or sepsis. No pregnancies were subsequently reported in the conserving surgery group. CONCLUSION: An initial conserving surgical procedure is an option in patients with extensive invasive placentation, but it requires further monitoring for potential complications and carries a high subsequent hysterectomy rate.

Purple urine bag syndrome in a patient with a nephrostomy tube.

Purple urine bag syndrome is an uncommon condition characterised by purple colouring of the urine in a chronically catheterised patient. Typically seen in patients with a Foley catheter in the bladder, we report an uncommon case of purple urine bag syndrome in a patient with a long-term nephrostomy tube and discuss the pathophysiology of this condition.