Roger Williams Now Offers Implantable Pump for Patients with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer and Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma
Hepatic Artery Infusion therapy delivers treatment directly to tumors in the liver, while minimizing the potential for systemic side effects
The cancer program at Roger Williams Medical Center is the first in Rhode Island to offer a powerful new pump-based treatment option for colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver and for a rare form of cancer that forms in bile ducts within the liver called intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.
Hepatic Artery Infusion (HAI) therapy uses a pump that is implanted just below the skin in a patient’s abdominal wall to deliver medicine directly to the liver through the hepatic artery, maximizing drug delivery to the tumors without adding systemic side effects.
Dr. Steve Kwon, a member of the division of surgical oncology, is leading a multidisciplinary team now offering this advanced therapy to patients with these hard-to-treat cancers, which typically have poor prognoses.
“We are excited to make this therapy option available locally to eligible cancer patients who otherwise might have to travel out of state,” said Dr. Kwon. “This is a proven, safe and effective treatment alternative that has the potential to positively impact patients’ overall survival and quality of life.”
Colorectal cancer – the third most common cancer in the United States with more than 150,000 new cases expected this year – is now the leading cause of cancer death in men under 50 and the second leading cause in women under 50. More than 50% of all people diagnosed with colorectal cancer will ultimately develop tumors in the liver, called colorectal liver metastases (CRLM). Clinical studies show that HAI therapy significantly reduced tumor size, enabled surgeons to resect (surgically remove) tumors that were previously unresectable, and increased survival independent of whether tumors were resected or not. Additional studies have documented that treatment with HAI therapy after surgical resection of CRLM tumors can significantly delay or prevent their recurrence as well as improve overall survival.
Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) is a rare form of cancer that originates in the bile ducts located inside the liver that impacts about 5,000 people in the United States each year. iCCA has a very poor prognosis if tumors are unable to be resected, and patients treated with standard-of-care chemotherapy alone rarely survive beyond three years. Clinical research has shown that combining HAI therapy with systemic chemotherapy may substantially extend overall survival for patients with iCCA that cannot be resected, with independent studies consistently reporting three-year survival rates greater than 30%.
Those interested in learning more about HAI therapy can contact Roger Williams Cancer Center at 401-456-2198.