Purpose: In patients with hepatic metastases from endocrine tumors, the safety and effectiveness of chemoembolization with ethiodized oil was determined and compared with those of embolization with particulate matter alone.
Patients and methods: Twenty patients with hepatic islet cell or carcinoid tumor metastases were treated with selective hepatic artery injection of doxorubicin and iopamidol emulsified in ethiodized oil, followed by gelatin foam powder embolization.
Results: In 16 patients with hormonally active tumors, hormone secretion decreased 90% (range, 69%-98%) in 10 days, with relief of symptoms in all patients. Average tumor size decrease was 84%; average hospitalization was 8 days. Seventeen patients are alive 6-27 months after embolization, and all are asymptomatic. Three patients died within 1 year after embolization of progressive disease outside the liver.
Conclusion: Chemoembolization with doxorubicin emulsified in ethiodized oil and iopamidol is effective in the treatment of hepatic metastases from endocrine tumors. This technique appears to result in less morbidity than particulate embolization alone.