Changes in hepatic blood flow during transcatheter arterial infusion with heated saline in hepatic VX2 tumor

This study evaluates the influence of transcatheter arterial infusion with heated saline on hepatic arterial and portal venous blood flows to tumor and normal hepatic tissues in a rabbit VX2 tumor model.

All animal experiments were approved by the institutional animal care and use committee. Twenty rabbits with VX2 liver tumors were divided into the following two groups: (a) the treated group (n = 10), which received a 60 mL transarterial injection of 60 °C saline via the hepatic artery; (b) the control group (n = 10), which received a 60 mL injection of 37 °C saline via the hepatic artery. Using ultrasonography, the blood flows in both the portal vein and hepatic artery were measured, and the changes in the hemodynamic indices were recorded before and immediately after the injection. The changes in the tumor and normal liver tissues of the two groups were histopathologically examined by hematoxylin and eosin staining after the injection.

After the transcatheter arterial heated infusion, there was a decrease in the hepatic arterial blood flow to the tumor tissue, a significant decrease in the hepatic artery mean velocity (P < 0.05), and a significant increase in the resistance index (P < 0.05). On hematoxylin and eosin staining, there were no obvious signs of tissue destruction in the normal liver tissue or the tumor tissue after heated perfusion, and coagulated blood plasma was observed in the cavities of intratumoral blood vessels in the treated group.

The changes in tumor blood flow in the rabbit VX2 tumor model were presumably caused by microthrombi in the tumor vessels, and the portal vein likely mediated the heat loss in normal liver tissue during the transarterial heated infusion.