Liver metastases refers to cancers that originated someplace else and spread to the liver. Generally, in metastatic cancer, the cancer can no longer be cured. However, in some cases, if the liver is the only site of metastases, then the cancer is still curable. Most metastatic liver cancers originate in the colon, but the liver is a common site of metastases for other cancers as well. In addition to standard treatments like chemotherapy and radiation, some treatments are used specifically for liver metastases.
Surgery & Cryosurgery
The liver has the ability to regenerate and return to normal if only 20 percent of the organ is intact. Thus, the liver is an excellent candidate for surgery. However, because metastatic cancer often spreads to multiple places, surgery to remove the liver may not be curative because of the presence of cancer cells elsewhere in the body. Still, surgery or cyrosurgery may be recommended alone or combined with other therapeutic methods. When the metastases is restricted to the liver, surgically removing the liver can eliminate the cancer. If the primary cancer is then treated before additional spread occurs, it is possible to cure the cancer.
Cyrosurgery is an alternative to surgery available to those for whom traditional surgery is not an option or for whom it will not be curative. Cyrosurgery involves freezing the tumor using a needle. It tends to be less effective then surgery, because sufficiently low temperatures to kill the cancer can't be achieved due to the liver's proximity to other vital organs.
Ablative Therapy
Ablation uses chemicals to destroy the tumor instead of removing the tumor or freezing it. There are three types of ablative therapy: percutaneous ablation (no incision is required), radiofrequency ablation and alcohol ablation. In radiofrequency ablation and alcohol ablation, radioactive chemicals or alcohol are injected directly into the tumor. This method can be used with chemotherapy and radiation to help improve quality of life and reduce symptoms or in conjunction with surgery to help make the cancer small enough to be removed by surgery or to eliminate cancer cells that remain after a surgical procedure.
Embolization
Embolization also kills the tumor, but it does so not by directly acting upon the tumor but instead by cutting off the tumors blood supply. The hepatic artery that delivers blood to the liver is blocked by the doctor, cutting off the essential blood and oxygen that the tumor needs to grow. Again, this can be combined with other treatments such as surgery or radiation and chemotherapy.
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