Endoscopic ultrasound-guided placement of plastic pigtail stents for the drainage of refractory malignant ascites

Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided drainage is now the treatment of choice in cases of pancreatic pseudocysts and walled-off necrosis, especially in the absence of luminal bulging and in patients with portal hypertension. Malignant refractory ascites usually heralds a poor prognosis and substantially impairs the quality of life of patients because of the symptoms experienced and the need for repeated paracentesis. EUS-guided placement of lumen-apposing, fully covered, self-expandable metal stents (FCSEMS) has been reported for the drainage of malignant ascites. Herein, we present the results of EUS-guided placement of plastic pigtails stents for the drainage of refractory malignant ascites in three patients. The aim was to improve symptoms and minimize the possible drawbacks of large-caliber FCSEMS. In this preliminary experience, EUS-guided placement of plastic stents was feasible and avoided further paracentesis.

Tenckhoff tunneled peritoneal catheter placement in the palliative treatment of malignant ascites: technical results and overall clinical outcome

Background

To assess the technical and clinical outcome of percutaneous insertion of tunneled peritoneal catheters in the palliative treatment of refractory malignant ascites and to determine the safety and feasibility of intraperitoneal administration of cytotoxic drugs through the tunneled catheter.

Materials and methods

Consecutive patients palliatively treated with a tunneled peritoneal catheter to drain the malignant ascites were identified. Patients’ medical history, procedural and clinical follow-up data, including complications and estimated survival, were reviewed. Additionally, a sub analysis of the patients with widespread ovarian cancer and refractory ascites treated with or without intraperitoneal administration of cytotoxic drugs was made.

Results

In all 94 patients it was technically feasible to insert the peritoneal drainage catheter and to drain a median of 3260 cc (range 100 cc – 8500 cc) of malignant ascitic fluid. Post procedural complications included catheter infection (n = 2; 2%), fluid leakage around the entry site (n = 4; 4%), catheter occlusion (n = 2; 2%), sleeve formation around the catheter tip (n = 1; 1%) and accidental loss of the catheter (n = 1; 1%). There was no increase in catheter infection rate in patients treated with or without intraperitoneal administration of cytotoxic drugs. Median overall survival after catheter insertion is 1.7 months.

Conclusions

Percutaneous insertion of a tunneled Tenckhoff catheter for the palliative drainage of malignant ascites and intraperitoneal infusion of cytotoxic drugs is feasible and associated with a very low complication rate, including catheter infection. These tunneled peritoneal lines are beneficial for symptomatic palliative treatment of refractory ascites and allow safe intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

Clinical trials of interventional oncology

Interventional oncology has great potential to be a good treatment modality in the field of oncology, because its procedures are minimally invasive and fairly quick. However, except for a few procedures such as percutaneous radiofrequency ablation and trans-catheter arterial chemo-embolization that have been recognized as standard treatments for hepatocellular carcinoma, most procedures have not been established as the standard treatment modality due to the limited number of clinical trials with compelling evidence. There are several common problems when performing clinical trials of interventional oncology. The first is that the outcomes of clinical trials are greatly influenced by the level of technical skill of the physicians. The second is that equipment and devices vary widely in countries and regions, and they also influence the outcomes. The third is that the methodology of clinical trials for techniques such as interventional oncology has not yet been established. The fourth is the difficulty of setting appropriate endpoints; quality of life is suitable for evaluating interventional oncology in palliative care, but it is not easy to set as the endpoint. The fifth is the difficulty of employing a blinded design, because the procedure cannot be performed without the physician's awareness. Despite such difficult situations, many multi-institutional clinical trials of interventional oncology have been carried out in Japan, with some challenging results. Establishing evidence is critical to making interventional oncology the standard treatment. Interventional radiologists should know the importance of clinical trials, and should move ahead in this direction in a step-by-step manner.