[Serious complication of radiofrequency treatment of inoperable bronchial carcinoma]

Surgery remains the only curative treatment for primary non-small cell bronchial carcinoma. It is mainly appropriate for small, localised tumours. Some patients have contra-indications to surgery and radiofrequency offers a minimally invasive alternative with few complications. It is performed under general anaesthesia by a percutaneous approach. The main complications are mechanical, primarily pneumothorax, and infections are uncommon and generally mild.

We report the case of a man treated by radiofrequency for a small bronchial carcinoma. The procedure was rapidly complicated by infection of the area treated, spreading throughout both lung fields and requiring intensive and prolonged antibiotic treatment. Resolution of the infection was slow despite appropriate treatment. The rapid onset and spread are explained by the immunosuppressed state of the patient.

Radiofrequency is a recent treatment for bronchial carcinoma that is developing rapidly. Though it is associated with low morbidity and mortality the possibility of potentially fatal infective complications in certain patients should be recognised.