[Assessment of therapeutic effects by transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) in hepatic malignant tumors with degradable starch microspheres (DSM)].

Transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) with degradable starch microspheres (DSM) was carried out for fourteen cases with hepatic malignancies including twelve cases with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one case with cholangiocarcinoma and one with metastatic liver cancer. DSM combined with anticancer agents were administered through a catheter introduced by Seldinger's method, in ten cases and through subcutaneously implanted drug delivery system (Port-A-Cath) in four cases. The dose of DSM was 900 mg/body and adriamycin 30-40 mg/m2 through the catheter or 12-14 mg/m2 through Port-A-Cath was used for HCC and cholangiocarcinoma. A same dose of DSM and mitomycin C 15 mg/m2 was administered for metastatic liver cancer through the catheter immediately after angiography. Results were as follows: 1) Partial response (PR) was obtained in six cases (50%) with HCC, and there were two other cases with minor response (MR). PR in cholangiocarcinoma and CR in metastatic liver cancer were obtained. 2) There were no adverse effects in four cases with Port-A-Cath. 3) The concentration of adriamycin in the peripheral venous blood was lower than that of one shot therapy, and decreased rapidly within an hour. These results suggested that good therapeutic effects can be obtained by TAE with DSM combined with anticancer agents for hepatic malignancies.