Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 9, 2026
Application of Laparoscopic Hepatectomy Combined with Intraoperative Microwave Ablation in Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastasis
Published on: March 3, 2023
Sequential preoperative ipsilateral portal and arterial embolization in patients with colorectal liver metastases
Salvatore Gruttadauria1, Angelo Luca, Lucio Mandala'
1University of Pittsburgh Medical Center European Medical Division, Instituto Mediterraneo per i Trapianti e Terapie ad Alta Specializzazione, Palermo, Italy. sgruttadauria@ismett.edu
Background:
Preoperative portal vein embolization (PVE) induces ipsilateral atrophy of the hepatic parenchyma to be resected, as well as contralateral compensatory hypertrophy of the residual liver. However, there are two potential problems with this technique: inadequate contralateral hypertrophy and tumor progression while waiting for the non-embolized liver to hypertrophy. We devised a strategy to deal with these two problems by performing an ipsilateral hepatic artery embolization 6 weeks after an unsatisfactory PVE in an effort to accelerate the hypertrophy of the remnant liver.
Materials And Methods:
Two patients with colorectal liver metastases underwent to this sequential preoperative treatment in order to achieve resectability of their metastatic disease.
Results:
Both patients successfully underwent major hepatic resection.
Conclusions:
In our experience sequential ipsilateral portal vein and hepatic artery embolization extended the indications for liver resection for metastatic colorectal cancer.
