Hepatic artery embolisation for neuroendocrine tumours (NETs)

Hepatic artery embolisation is used to treat tumours in the liver. Tumours need a blood supply to survive. This treatment works by reducing the blood flow to the liver.

Hepatic artery embolisation for NETs

A hepatic artery embolisation can sometimes shrink a neuroendocrine tumour (NET) in the liver. It can also help to relieve the symptoms of carcinoid syndrome. You may be offered this treatment for thefollowing reasons:

• You have NETs in your liver, and surgery is not an option. This may be because of where the NETs are, or you do not want surgery, or you are not fit enough for an operation
• Other treatments for the NET have not helped.
• The NET is producing a lot of hormones that are causing symptoms.

Having hepatic artery embolisation

At the hospital before you have the treatment, you may be given a drip (infusion) of octreotide. This helps reduce or prevent carcinoid symptoms.

Treatment is usually done in the x-ray department (radiology) of the hospital by a specialist doctor known as an interventional radiologist.You may be given a sedative to make you feel sleepy. During the hepatic artery embolisation the doctor gently puts a thin tube into the main blood vessel in your groin (the femoral artery). You will have a local anaesthetic to numb the skin in that area.

Guided by a scan, they slowly feed the tube into the main blood vessel of the liver (the hepatic artery). They then inject a drug that blocks the blood supply.

Sometimes the drug is combined with chemotherapy. This is called chemoembolisation. The highly concentrated chemotherapy stays in the tumour to kill some of the cells and shrink the tumour.

Chemoembolisation is sometimes called TACE (trans-arterial chemoembolisation) or CT-ACE (computerised tomography guided arterial chemoembolisation).

After treatment

You will rest in bed for a few hours afterwards. You may stay in hospital overnight. You may feel sick, have tummy (abdominal) pain and a high temperature for a few days afterwards. Your doctor or nurse can give you more information.

At the hospital before you have the treatment, you may be given a drip (infusion) of octreotide. This helps reduce or prevent carcinoid symptoms.

Treatment is usually done in the x-ray department (radiology) of the hospital by a specialist doctor known as an interventional radiologist.You may be given a sedative to make you feel sleepy. During the hepatic artery embolisation the doctor gently puts a thin tube into the main blood vessel in your groin (the femoral artery). You will have a local anaesthetic to numb the skin in that area.

Guided by a scan, they slowly feed the tube into the main blood vessel of the liver (the hepatic artery). They then inject a drug that blocks the blood supply.

Sometimes the drug is combined with chemotherapy. This is called chemoembolisation. The highly concentrated chemotherapy stays in the tumour to kill some of the cells and shrink the tumour.

Chemoembolisation is sometimes called TACE (trans-arterial chemoembolisation) or CT-ACE (computerised tomography guided arterial chemoembolisation).