Palliative laser therapy for tumours of the gastrointestinal tract

The argon ion and Nd: YAG lasers were used initially in the mid 1970s to produce haemostasis in acutely bleeding peptic ulcers. With the evolution of treatment techniques, the main area of use of the Nd: YAG laser has now become the palliation of upper and lower GI malignancies. Thermal ablation of tumours may be achieved endoscopically by non-contact laser application at high power, or in the contact mode using artificial sapphire probes at much lower energy levels. Still lower powers can be employed therapeutically using interstitial hyperthermia, and this is best applied endoscopically to exophytic tumour nodules in the gut lumen or to tumours localized ultrasonically in solid organs, such as the liver or pancreas. PDT involves destruction of previously photosensitized tumours by the cytotoxic action of singlet oxygen released on exposure of the neoplastic tissue to light of an appropriate wavelength. Although the theory is attractive, the available experimental and clinical information suggests that treatment should, for the present, be confined to small or early malignancies whose depth of invasion can be verified by endoscopic ultrasound or other imaging techniques. PDT carries the biological advantage of healing by regeneration with preservation of connective tissue stroma, while the Nd: YAG laser causes destruction by thermal coagulation or vaporization and subsequent healing by fibrosis. Laser therapy of GI tumours expands the range of therapeutic endoscopic procedures in a relatively safe and readily repeatable manner which achieves high patient tolerance. By reducing morbidity, mortality and time spent in hospital, it offers significant advantages in the palliative treatment of conditions previously managed by conventional surgery, and also offers opportunities for treatment of previously inoperable disorders. Developments in laser technology and diagnostic imaging techniques are likely to promote laser therapy in the future as a primary treatment modality.