The minimally-invasive treatments provided by the best interventional radiology doctors in Phoenix thus have a strong place in the overall treatment of cancer. Even when surgery presents the best chances for a cure, IR treatments such as chemoembolization or tumor ablation may be employed to shrink tumors or stop their growth before surgery. Because systemic chemotherapy does not have a strong history of curing liver cancer when used as a standalone therapy, IR used in conjunction with other therapies can often improve the chances of a cure, as well as providing palliative relief and improving patients’ quality of life.

What types of interventional radiology therapies are used to treat cancer?

IR therapies are often a strong part of “liver-directed” therapies in which the tumors themselves are treated locally. Percutaneous ablation therapy, for example, is often used to treat small HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma) tumors by using CT or ultrasound scans to guide a catheter to the location of the tumor and then using heat (radiofrequency ablation), cold (cryoablation), or chemicals (percutaneous ethanol installation) to destroy them. Ablation is a good choice in these cases because it limits the treatment to the area of the tumors, sparing the rest of the liver. The minimally-invasive nature of the procedure is also easier on the patients, who can often go home the same day. Tumors of the liver can also be attacked directly via embolization, to deliver chemotherapy drugs directly to the tumor and/or to block blood flow to the tumors and shrink them by depriving them of oxygen and nutrients. For details on these procedures, see the Cancer Care section of our website, where we describe certain techniques.

IR therapies are also used to treat side effects of cancer

Another interventional radiology procedure called TIPSS (Transjugular Intrahepatic Porto-Systemic Shunt) is often used to treat portal hypertension, a condition that often afflicts patients with liver cancer. It is used to re-establish proper blood flow to the liver when it has become obstructed.

Pain management is often a big part of treating cancer as well, and several IR treatments provided by Comprehensive Interventional Care Centers have helped to make our facilities one of the best pain management centers in Phoenix. Minimally-invasive IR therapies can reduce patient pain by delivering epidural spinal injections, facet injections, and selective nerve root blocks, and a procedure called kyphoplasty can also help to reverse pain caused by cancer-caused bone degeneration.

Cancer Care

Your interventional radiologist is an integral member of the team helping to fight your cancer

The interventional radiologists at Comprehensive Interventional Care Centers pride themselves on working closely with patients and their doctors. Together we determine the best and most effective treatments to fight your cancer, and then each of us provides our specialized treatments. So if you are being treated for cancer, make sure your oncologists, radiation oncologists, surgical oncologists, and other health care providers are familiar with our website at www.ciccenters.com and know what makes us one of the best cancer facilities in Phoenix.

The post Experts from one of the Best Cancer Facilities in Phoenix Explain the Role of Interventional Radiology in Modern Cancer Treatment appeared first on Comprehensive Integrated Care.

Increasingly, among the most important members of any cancer-fighting medical team are its interventional radiologists. These specialists – especially the best interventional radiology doctors in Phoenix who created Comprehensive Interventional Care Centers – have spent many years becoming experts in the use of visualization technologies such as X-ray, fluoroscopy, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Diagnostic radiologists use these technologies to detect cancer, but interventional radiologists also use them to treat cancer, using minimally-invasive surgical procedures that have many advantages for the patient.

What are the advantages of interventional radiology (IR) cancer treatment?

In many cases, invasive surgery and systemic chemotherapy still present the best hope for a cure of many cancers. But any surgery that requires deep incisions and general anesthesia always introduces an element of risk for the patient, and systemic (intravenous) chemotherapy has a number of side effects.

Interventional radiology avoids these risks because of its minimally-invasive nature. Instead of accessing the areas to be operated on via incisions, IR specialists access them by inserting a tiny needle or catheter into a vein or artery and guiding it into place with visualization technology. Once in place, the catheter can be used to apply heat (via radiofrequency or laser energy), cold (cryotherapy), or chemicals (chemotherapy) directly to the tumors being treated. This has the advantage of isolating the effects of the chemotherapy or radiation to the area of the tumor itself, with little effect on surrounding tissues.

At the same time, IR procedures have many advantages for patients, because they can be treated as outpatients, often going home from the facility the same day. Also, when treating liver cancer in Phoenix with IR techniques, less recovery time is necessary, so it is possible to integrate IR treatment with other more traditional types of treatment.

If this is true, why aren’t all cancers treated with IR therapies?

Not all tumors are amenable to direct interventional radiology treatment. Also, as noted earlier, there are some cancers for which surgery or systemic chemotherapy present the best hope for a complete cure. However, even in these cases there are many instances in which IR treatments are used in conjunction with surgery and systemic chemotherapy to destroy small tumors, or to shrink large ones in preparation for surgery. So some of the best liver cancer doctors in Phoenix view this not as a “replacement” for other cancer therapies, but as “another tool in the treatment arsenal,” another way to give each cancer patient the best chance for a cure.

Working hand in hand with other specialists, Comprehensive Interventional Care Center’s interventional radiologists have helped to create the best cancer treatment center in Phoenix. If you are being treated for cancer, make sure your oncologist, surgeons, and other health care providers are familiar with our website and the specialized skillsets of our highly-trained physicians. Or call us directly at 888-377-7122 and we’ll do our best to answer any questions you might have about interventional radiology and the advantages it brings to cancer treatment.

The post The Best Liver Cancer Doctors in Phoenix Discuss the Advantages of Interventional Radiology vs. More Invasive Treatments appeared first on Comprehensive Integrated Care.