Interventional Radiology for the Cancer Patient

Abstract

Overview In the past decades, there has been a substantial expansion in the use of image‐guided procedures for diagnosing and treating various types of cancer. There are several reasons for this increased use. Advances in cancer diagnosis and novel medical and surgical therapies have led to increased survival in this patient population. More patients now present with primary or metastatic disease confined to an organ and are consequently more likely to benefit from locoregional therapies. 1–3 Thus, a neoplasm can be defined using standard imaging modalities, and then minimally invasive percutaneous techniques can be used to establish the diagnosis and to provide locoregional or palliative therapies to treat the cancer patient. Improvements in catheter/device technology, embolic agents and chemotherapy drugs, and delivery systems are associated with improved patient outcome and have sparked renewed interest in these approaches. In this chapter, we discuss hepatic vascular interventions, genitourinary interventions, thoracic interventions, several forms of palliative therapeutic procedures, and some additional image‐guided procedures.