CT-guided radioactive seeds 125I implantation used as salvage therapy for malignant pelvic tumors: evaluation of short-term effects

Objective To evaluate the short-term clinical effects and safety of CT-guided radioactive seeds 125I implantation used as salvage therapy for malignant pelvic tumors.Methods A total of 32 patients(4 males and 28 females,aged 22-74 years) with recurrent or metastatic malignant pelvic tumors were enrolled in this study.The detected lesions were 35 in total.The longest diameter of the lesions ranged from 3 to 12 cm with a mean of(6.8 ± 2.3) cm.All the patients had received combination therapy such as surgery,chemotherapy,radiotherapy,etc.before.Treatment plan system(TPS) was used to design the optimal distribution and needed number of 125I seeds according to matched peripheral dose(MPD).Under CT guidance,125I seeds were implanted into the pelvic lesions.All patients were followed up for two months,and the clinical effective rate,pain relief,quality of life and clinical complications were evaluated.Results The clinical effective rate,pain relief,quality of life and clinical complications were assessed at two months after the treatment.Of the 35 patients,complete response(CR) was obtained in 4,partial response(PR) in 20,stable disease(SD) in 6 and progressive disease(PD) in 5.The clinical effective rate(CR + PR + SD) was 85.7%(30/35).The pain relief rate was 89.3%(25/28).The general living quality was significantly improved when compared with the preoperative condition(P 0.01).The short-term adverse effects were very mild.No severe complications such as massive bleeding,pelvic abscess,intestinal fistula,intestinal perforation,etc.occurred.Conclusion As a salvage therapy for recurrent or metastatic malignant pelvic tumors,CT-guided radioactive seeds 125 I implantation is safe,simple and minimally-invasive with higher short-term clinical effective rate.Therefore,this technique can be used as an effective local therapy to improve patient’s living quality as well as to reduce the tumor load.