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Extracorporeal liver ablation using sonography-guided high-intensity focused ultrasound
R Yang1, N T Sanghvi, F J Rescorla
1Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis.
Rationale And Objectives:
High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is the only radiation beam that can remotely destroy deep-seated tissue targets without causing damage to the intervening tissues. This study evaluates the ability of sonography-guided HIFU to extracorporeally induce liver ablation in a rabbit model.
Methods:
Under sonographic guidance, the HIFU beam was transcutaneously focused at the target tissue in the liver through a subcostal approach. A computer controlled the HIFU exposure and transducer movement to destroy a preselected tissue volume. Simultaneous sonography monitored the tissue response. Ten insonated rabbits were killed from days 0 to 10, and the liver and intervening tissues were examined histologically.
Results:
A sharply demarcated sonolesion of coagulation necrosis was produced in the liver in 9 of 10 animals. No damage was found in the intervening tissues (n = 6) when adequate acoustic coupling and proper beam path was applied.
Conclusion:
Sonography-guided HIFU might be a potential new modality for extracorporeal inducement of liver cancer ablation without resorting to laparatomy.