Hepatic Chemoembolization: A Novel Regional Therapy

Nonresectable and metastatic liver tumors are difficult challenges in veterinary patients. As such, these animals traditionally have been treated conservatively and symptomatically. The relatively limited efficacy of routine (intravenous) chemotherapy for macroscopic disease and the cost and potential deleterious side effects associated with radiation therapy have led investigators to evaluate increasingly novel therapeutic modalities. Interventional radiology techniques offer the potential for improved tumor response rates, prolonged survival times, and enhanced quality of life in patients with minimal systemic toxicity risks.