R. Lencioni et al., HEPATOCELLULAR-CARCINOMA - USE OF COLOR DOPPLER US TO EVALUATE RESPONSE TO TREATMENT WITH PERCUTANEOUS ETHANOL INJECTION, Radiology, 194(1), 1995, pp. 113-118
PURPOSE: To determine the usefulness of color Doppler ultrasound (US)
in the evaluation of the response of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to
percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-on
e patients with 48 lesions 2-5 cm in diameter underwent color Doppler
US before and after PEI. Computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance
(MR) imaging, and percutaneous biopsy were also performed to help esta
blish the outcome of therapy. RESULTS: Before treatment, color signals
with an arterial Doppler spectrum were seen in 44 of 48 lesions with
a frequency shift of 0.51-4.11 kHz (mean, 1.65 kHz). After PEI, 37 of
these lesions showed no color signal and were found to be necrotic at
CT, MR imaging, and biopsy. In six of seven lesions containing residua
l tumor, pulsatile flow was still identified, although the frequency s
hift was significantly decreased (P = .01). CONCLUSION: Color Doppler
US proved useful in the assessment of the therapeutic effect of PEI on
HCC.