Metastasis is a rare presentation of non-secretory paraganglioma. Consequently, there is no standard of care for the treatment of metastatic malignant paraganglioma. The most widely used chemotherapy regimen for non-resectable cases includes cyclophosphamide, vincristine, and dacarbazine (CVD). CVD has been previously studied with variable therapeutic response. However, yttrium-90 (Y90) radioembolization has not been previously studied in the treatment of hepatic metastasis in patients diagnosed with malignant paraganglioma. This case report follows the treatment of a patient with stage IV mediastinal paraganglioma with metastasis to the liver. Treatment consisted of the CVD chemotherapy regimen and Y90 radioembolization of the hepatic lesions. After 10 cycles of CVD, the tumor size has decreased from 6.0 × 8.8 to 5.5 × 3.0 × 3.4 cm on computed tomography scan. The prominent metastatic liver lesions responded after Y90 radioembolization of both the right and left hepatic arteries. The prominent right hepatic lobe lesion has decreased in size from 2.6 × 3.4 × 3.0 cm to 2.6 × 2.8 × 2.9 cm. The prominent left hepatic lobe lesion originally measuring 1.6 cm in diameter completely resolved on follow-up imaging studies. After completion of 12 cycles of chemotherapy, the most recent positron emission testing scan determined no evidence of disease regarding both the primary mass and the hepatic lesions. This study demonstrates the first case of combination chemotherapy and Y90 radioembolization with a complete response per response evaluation criteria in solid tumors criteria. The approaches toward diagnosis and treatment corresponding to this case of malignant metastatic paraganglioma are also reviewed in this study. World J Oncol. 2017;8(3):92-95 doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/wjon1033w
This study was undertaken to present data from a phase 2 study in which patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with and without portal vein thrombosis underwent radioembolization with Yttrium (90Y) microspheres. Patients treated were stratified by Okuda, Child-Pugh, baseline bilirubin, tumor burden, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG), presence of cirrhosis and portal vein thrombosis (PVT) (none, branch, and main). Clinical and biochemical data were obtained at baseline and at 4-week intervals following treatment for up to 6 months. Tumor response was obtained using computed tomography (CT). Patients were followed for survival. One hundred eight patients were treated during the study period. Thirty-seven (34%) patients had PVT, 12 (32%) of which involved the main PV. The cumulative dose for those with and without PVT was 139.7 Gy and 131.9 Gy, respectively. The partial response rate using world Health Organization (WHO) criteria was 42.2%. Using European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), the response rate was 70%. Kaplan-Meier survival varied depending on location of PVT and presence of cirrhosis. The adverse event (AE) rates were highest in patients with main PVT and cirrhosis. There were no cases of radiation pneumonitis. Conclusion: The use of minimally embolic 90Y glass microspheres to treat patients with HCC complicated by branch/lobar PVT may be clinically indicated and appears to have a favorable toxicity profile. Further investigation is warranted in patients with main PVT. (Hepatology 2007.)
To evaluate the correlation between change in attenuation and tumor metabolic activity assessed by using fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) in colon cancer liver metastases treated with yttrium 90 ((90)Y) radioembolization.This Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant retrospective study was approved by the institutional review board; patient informed consent was waived. Unresectable chemorefractory colon cancer liver metastases treated with (90)Y radioembolization in 28 patients were evaluated at pre- and posttreatment multidetector computed tomographic (CT) and FDG PET scans. Maximum cross-sectional diameter, volume, and overall attenuation of target lesions were calculated. The percentage change (%Delta) in these parameters after treatment was calculated and correlated with the standardized uptake value (SUV) analysis at FDG PET. The accuracy of the radiologic parameters in helping predict response to treatment at FDG PET was assessed. Data were analyzed by using the Student t, Wilcoxon matched pair, Mann-Whitney, Spearman rank correlation, and chi(2) tests. The significance level was set at .05.Seventy-four metastatic lesions in 10 women and 18 men (mean age, 61.5 years +/- 14.3 [standard deviation]) were evaluated. Mean follow-up interval for multidetector CT after treatment was 30 days. A significant reduction in maximum cross-sectional diameter, volume, and attenuation was observed from pre- to posttreatment multidetector CT (P < .05). The %Delta in attenuation had higher correlation with %Delta in SUV (r = 0.61) than diameter (r = 0.39) or volume (r = 0.49) and also predicted the metabolic activity at FDG PET with higher sensitivity (P < .001). By using a threshold level of a reduction in attenuation of 15% or greater, attenuation showed 84.2% sensitivity and 83.3% specificity in predicting response at FDG PET evaluation.Changes in attenuation of colon cancer liver metastases treated with (90)Y radioembolization correlate highly with metabolic activity at FDG PET and may be useful as an early surrogate marker for assessing treatment response.
