What is Transarterial Radioembolization (TARE)



Liver malignancy, be it primary tumors like Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) and Cholangiocarcinoma, is one of the top five most common cancers worldwide and is also a frequent cause of cancer-related mortality. In most of the cases, Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is often diagnosed late in the intermediate-advanced stage (stage B and C). Because of this often-late diagnosis, radical therapy doesn’t offer much success. While a few curative and/ or palliative therapies might help, but they are not often characterized by a favorable safety or efficacy ratio. Hence for this intermediate to advanced stages of HCC, internal radionuclide therapy is emerging as a good therapeutic option. And according to several studies, Transarterial Radioembolization (TARE) or intra-arterial injection of a radiolabeled embolising agent has led to extremely promising results, both in terms of demonstration of a good tolerability profile and disease control.

Transarterial Radioembolization (TARE) is also simply known as Radioembolization is a combination of Radiation Therapy and a procedure known as Embolization – a minimally invasive treatment in which blood vessels are blocked off to prevent blood flow. In TARE, tiny beads of glass or resin known as microspheres are administered inside the blood vessels that are feeding a tumor so that the supply of blood to the cancer cells can be blocked off. These microspheres are loaded with a radioactive compound – either Yttrium90 or Lipiodol labelled with iodine131 or rhenium188. Once they get lodged at the tumor site, they deliver a high dose of radiation to the tumor without affecting the normal tissues.

TARE is a palliative treatment (it means that it does not provide a cure) that helps slow down the disease growth and also helps alleviate symptoms. It is often used as a treatment option for patients who cannot undergo other treatment options such as liver surgery or liver transplantation.


Read More at What is Transarterial Radioembolization (TARE)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

where is use Yttrium-90 and Its Side Effect

  Yttrium-90 or Y-90 is a commonly used isotope in the medical field specially in departments like nuclear medicine and radiation oncology for radiation therapy. This radioisotope is relied upon to provide a prescribed amount of radiation to a targeted area , such as a tumor. One of the most common uses of Y90 is during an internal radiation therapy called radioembolization. Radioembolization or  Transarterial Radioembolization  using Y-90 involves the use of glass/ resin spheres that are filled with the isotope and placed directly into the blood supply of the liver tumor through a minimally invasive procedure. These spheres get lodged within the tumor itself. The doctors then block off the blood vessels to prevent blood flow (embolization). These Y-90 labelled spheres then get to work by radiating and destroying the tumor. Commonly, Y-90 labelled spheres are used for the treatment of liver tumors, primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and unresectable primary colore...
Read more

Tare Vs Tace For Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Net Patients

  The incidence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma or HCC has been increasing over the past several years and several studies have projected that the incidence of HCC will continue to rise in the coming years. Transarterial Chemoembolisation or TACE has been the initial treatment modality for HCC and has a huge body of evidence from several studies and clinical trials. Therefore, for long TACE has been a preferred treatment algorithm for unresectable HCC. However, as the experience of  Transarterial Radioembolisation or TARE  has evolved, it is playing an increasingly important role in the treatment of unrespectable HCC. Studies and trials have shown that TARE has many potential advantages over TACE and there is now substantial evidence to favor TARE over TACE. The many potential advantages of TARE when compared with TACE are as below: · Several studies have shown a statistically significant overall survival advantage with TARE as compared to TACE. · TARE has better health-relat...
Read more

Is PRRT Right For You?

Image
  How do doctors determine that PRRT should be the treatment of choice for a neuroendocrine tumour? PRRT  or Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy is a molecular therapy that is one of the accepted modes of treatment for Neuroendocrine Tumours (NETs). Before we go on to discuss the above topic at hand, let me explain PRRT. In PRRT, a radiopeptide is created by combining a small amount of radioactive material or radionuclide (Yttrium-90 or Y-90 and Lutetium-177 or Lu-77) with a cell-targeting protein. This radiopeptide, when injected into a neuroendocrine tumour patient’s bloodstream, travels and binds itself to the neuroendocrine tumour cells to deliver a high dose of radiation that targets only the cancer cells. Also Read:  How Does a Typical PRRT Day look like? Doctors recommend PRRT for patients diagnosed with Advanced Metastatic or Progressive Neuroendocrine Tumours (NETs); also for NET patients who are ineligible for surgery; and also for those NET patients w...
Read more