The role of minimally invasive, locoregional therapies in cancer is increasingly driven by the detection of small asymptomatic disease either incidentally or under surveillance for a known primary malignancy. Percutaneous image-guided ablation has become established as a parenchyma-sparing tool in the management of small volume primary and metastatic disease in the liver as well as solitary renal masses. As ablation is non-extirpative, post-ablation imaging is critical for the assessment of treatment completion, recurrence, and complications. Within established regional cancer networks, understanding of normal post-ablation imaging appearances is essential for the early identification of primary treatment failure or local recurrence, which may be amenable to repeat treatment. We provide an imaging primer of two common ablation sites - kidney and liver - focusing on normal appearances and appreciation of local disease progression.
Clinical radiology. 2017 Feb 22 [Epub ahead of print]
N Patel, A J King, D J Breen
Department of Radiology, University Hospital Southampton, Tremona Road, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK. Electronic address: ., Department of Radiology, University Hospital Southampton, Tremona Road, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK.