Mid-term results in otherwise treatment refractory primary or secondary liver confined tumours treated with selective internal radiation therapy (SIRT) using (90)Yttrium resin-microspheres.

The purpose was to determine the response and survival and to analyse the feasibility of single-session, whole-liver SIRT in patients with non-resectable, otherwise non-responding liver cancer. Thirty-nine patients qualified for SIRT. Eighteen patients suffered from colorectal-cancer metastases (CRC), breast-cancer metastases (MBC, 7), HCC (5) and other tumours (9). Response was assessed by tumour-markers and CT-imaging. At 2-4, 5-7 and 8-9 months follow-up in 3/17, 5/15 and 5/10 of CRC-patients CEA-levels were higher than before. In the MBC group 1-3 and 4-6 months after SIRT tumour-marker-levels were higher in 2/6 and 3/3 patients, respectively. In all HCC-patients AFP-levels dropped 1-3 months after SIRT. Using RECIST, in the CRC-group progressive liver disease (PD) was found in 4/17, 2/12, 2/10 and 2/5 patients at 2-4, 5-8, 9-10 and 12-14 months follow-up. Concerning MBC, after 3 months 7/7 patients presented with stable-disease (SD) or partial-response (PR). At 5-6 months, 1/5 patients showed PD. All HCC-patients showed SD/PR at 2-3 months with no PD at 5-8 months. In the mixed-group 5/6 patients presented with SD/PR at 3-4 months and with SD in 2/3 patients at 5-6 months. The median time-to-PD was 6.5, 8.5 and 8 months for the CRC-, MBC- and mixed-group, respectively. SIRT is a promising, liver-targeted approach for patients with otherwise treatment-refractory liver tumours.