Portal and Hepatic Vein Embolization versus Portal Venous Embolization Alone in Cirrhotic and Noncirrhotic Swine: A Pilot Study.

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of combined portal vein embolization (PVE) and hepatic vein embolization (HVE) compared with that of PVE alone in cirrhotic and noncirrhotic swine.

Materials And Methods: Sixteen Yorkshire pigs were included in this study. In the cirrhotic group (n = 8) and noncirrhotic group (n = 8), subjects underwent embolization according to established protocols.

Molecular MRI of T-cell immune response to cryoablation in immunologically hot . cold hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background & Aims: Increasing enthusiasm around integrating locoregional therapy with systemic immunotherapy in primary liver cancer underscores the need for non-invasive imaging biomarkers. In this study, we aimed to establish advanced molecular MRI tools for monitoring T-cell responses to cryoablation in murine models, distinguishing between immunologically "hot" and "cold" hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Immunocompetent 7-10-week-old C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ mice (n = 18 each) received carbon tetrachloride for 12 weeks to induce cirrhosis.

Investigating synergy between beta-blockers and transarterial chemoembolization in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: preliminary data from a propensity matched analysis.

Purpose: Favorable clinical outcomes have been reported with the adjunct use of beta-blockers in cancer treatment, hypothetically secondary to their anti-angiogenic/anti-proliferative effects. Hereby, we investigate whether there is synergy between beta-blockers and TACE in the treatment of HCC.

Methods: 36 HCC patients on beta-blockers (mean dose of 48 mg daily) at the time of first-line treatment with TACE at our institution were retrospectively identified out of a cohort of 221 patients between 2008 and 2019.

High-resolution extracellular pH imaging of liver cancer with multiparametric MR using Deep Image Prior.

Noninvasive extracellular pH (pH) mapping with Biosensor Imaging of Redundant Deviation in Shifts (BIRDS) using MR spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) has been demonstrated on 3T clinical MR scanners at 8  mm spatial resolution and applied to study various liver cancer treatments. Although pH imaging at higher resolution can be achieved by extending the acquisition time, a postprocessing method to increase the resolution is preferable, to minimize the duration spent by the subject in the MR scanner. In this work, we propose to improve the spatial resolution of pH mapping with BIRDS by incorporating anatomical information in the form of multiparametric MRI and using an unsupervised deep-learning technique, Deep Image Prior (DIP).

Effect of Incomplete Cryoablation and Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibition on Intratumoral CD8 T-Cell Infiltration in Murine Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background Image-guided tumor ablation is the first-line therapy for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with ongoing investigations into its combination with immunotherapies. Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) inhibition demonstrates immunomodulatory potential and reduces HCC tumor growth when combined with ablative treatment. Purpose To evaluate the effect of incomplete cryoablation with or without MMP inhibition on the local immune response in residual tumors in a murine HCC model.

Protrieve sheath utilization for capturing supra-filter thrombus during a retrieval of thrombosed and embedded IVC filter.

Background: Inferior vena cava (IVC) filters, while effective in preventing pulmonary embolism, can increase the risk of IVC thrombosis. IVC filter (IVCF) thrombosis can result from emboli getting trapped within the filter, extension of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), or the device's inherent thrombogenicity causing in situ thrombosis. This condition can cause noticeable clinical symptoms and complicate the removal of the filter due to the potential for thromboembolism, often resulting in temporary filters remaining unextracted.

Hepatic Hypertrophy in Normal and Cirrhotic Livers Following Portal Vein Embolization: Comparative Assessment of 2 Different Embolic Regimens in a Large Animal Model.

Purpose: To compare the mechanistic effects and hypertrophy outcomes using 2 different portal vein embolization (PVE) regimens in normal and cirrhotic livers in a large animal model.

Methods And Materials: The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee approved all experiments conducted in this study. Fourteen female Yorkshire pigs were separated into a cirrhotic group (CG, n = 7) and non-cirrhotic group (NCG, n = 7) and further subgrouped into those using microspheres and coils (MC, n = 3) or n-butyl cyanoacrylate (nBCA, n = 3) and their corresponding controls (each n = 1).

Non-Invasive Imaging Biomarkers to Predict the Hepatopulmonary Shunt Fraction Before Transarterial Radioembolization in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Purpose: To identify disease-specific profiles comprising patient characteristics and imaging biomarkers on contrast-enhanced (CE)-computed tomography (CT) that enable the non-invasive prediction of the hepatopulmonary shunt fraction (HPSF) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) before resin-based transarterial radioembolization (TARE).

Patients And Methods: This institutional review board-approved (EA2/071/19) retrospective study included 56 patients with HCC recommended for TARE. All patients received tri-phasic CE-CT within 6 weeks prior to an angiographic TARE evaluation study using technetium-99m macroaggregated albumin.

Experimental VX2 Rabbit Liver Tumor Model in Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Cirrhosis of the Liver.

Liver cirrhosis is a major underlying factor in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. Currently, there is an unmet need for midsize experimental vertebrate models that would offer reproducible implantable liver tumors in a cirrhotic liver background. This study establishes a protocol for a syngeneic rabbit model of VX2 liver cancer with underlying liver cirrhosis induced using carbon tetrachloride (CCl).