ObjectivesWe conducted an in vivo trial on swine to compare the ablation volumes of irreversible electroporation (IRE) followed by drug-eluting beads transarterial chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) versus IRE only.Materials and MethodsNine swine… Click to show full abstract
ObjectivesWe conducted an in vivo trial on swine to compare the ablation volumes of irreversible electroporation (IRE) followed by drug-eluting beads transarterial chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) versus IRE only.Materials and MethodsNine swine underwent CT-guided IRE in one liver lobe and IRE immediately followed by DEB-TACE in a different liver lobe. For DEB-TACE, 100–300 µm beads (DC-Beads®) were loaded with 50 mg doxorubicin. For IRE, the NanoKnife® was used employing two electrodes according to the vendor’s protocol. Imaging follow-up was performed including CT-based lesion volume assessment using contrast-enhanced CT (venous phase) on days 1, 3, and 7 after the procedure. Three animals were killed for histopathological analysis after each follow-up.ResultsAblation volumes in CT in the IRE + DEB-TACE group were 15.4 ± 10.5 ml on day 1, 8.7 ± 5.6 ml on day 3, and 1.6 ± 0.7 ml on day 7. In the IRE group, the corresponding values were 5.2 ± 5.2 ml on day 1, 1.0 ± 1.2 ml on day 3, and 0.1 ± 0.1 ml on day 7. On day 1 and day 3, ablation volumes of IRE + TACE group were significantly larger than in the IRE group (p < 0.05). 96% of beads were depicted in or around ablative lesions. 69% of these beads were found in the surrounding hemorrhagic infiltration and 31% within the ablative lesion itself.ConclusionsCombination of IRE immediately followed by DEB-TACE resulted in larger ablation volumes compared to IRE alone, suggesting that local efficacy of IRE can be enhanced by post-IRE DEB-TACE.
               
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