Cryosurgery is the oldest thermal ablation method, and was first performed in the mid-nineteenth century. Since the development of cryosurgical systems capable of delivering liquid nitrogen, organs in various regions have been treated with cryosurgery. However, the lack of an adequate monitoring modality during the freezing process did not allow the precise and complete destruction of lesions deep inside the parenchyma. This led to local recurrences caused by unsatisfactory results of treatment. Recently, a magnetic resonance (MR)-compatible argon-based cryoablation system has been developed, and a combination of this cryoablation system and MR imaging has been shown to be an effective method for treating malignant tumors. In this article, we describe our clinical experience of percutaneous MR-guided cryoablation for malignancies, focusing on renal cell carcinoma.
Objectives: We aimed to investigate the relationship between MR imaging detectability and its pathological depth of invasion (DOI) of oral tongue cancer, as well as its usefulness to assess the necessity of elective neck dissection. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed early stage oral tongue cancer patients treated with radical surgery with clinically N0, between May 2009 and February 2016. Collected data include age, sex, pathological DOI, DOI on MRI, locoregional control rate, disease-free survival rate, and overall survival rate. These data were statistically compared between the detectable lesion (DL) group and undetectable lesion (UL) group on MRI. Interobserver agreement in evaluation of detectability of the oral tongue cancer was assessed by k statistics. Results: Total of 53 patients were studied, and 28 were DLs and 25 ULs. Pathological DOI in UL was significantly smaller than that of DL (average 1.7 vs 4.6 mm, p < 0.001). Cutoff value between UL group and DL group was 3.5 mm (sensitivity 96 %, specificity 75 %). 96 % of ULs had pathological DOI smaller than 4 mm, the recommended cutoff value for neck dissection. There was no significant difference in locoregional control rate (p = 0.24), disease-free survival rate (p = 0.24) or overall survival rate (p = 0.92). Interobserver agreement in evaluation of detectability on MRI was very good (k-value = 0.89, p < 0.001). conclusions: When oral tongue cancer is not detected on MRI, it indicates pathological DOI being smaller than 4 mm, which may imply that elective neck dissection is unnecessary.
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