liver regrowth after resection

Sundanceh said:

Hi, Lisa

In my case, the liver tumor had grown at a very fast rate in a very short time period. Was doubling every 2 months, so it had gotten quite large.

My doctor was going to send me next door to the local hospital, but I told him I had been researching a doctor in Atlanta, GA, whose name escapes me now, but he was primary liver surgeon and transplant. He asked me why did I want to do this; I told him because I wanted a chance at living and this guy specializes in only that.

He changed his mind and gave me a referral of this other Liver and transplant surgeon at Baylor Medical. He has world renown credentials and travels to other parts of the globe to teach about RFA to others; he has write ups in some magazines and was voted one of the best in the DFW area. This doctor immediately told me liver resection as well and told me he was taking 80% of my liver with him; I took a leap of faith and said OK; I just did not have enough information and looking back I cannot believe I did that, but I wanted so bad to cut this killer out of my body.

When surgery started, they discovered I had a fatty liver and was not eligible for a liver resection, so he switched gears and went with the RFA procedure after presenting this option to my wife - I was under anesthesia opened up on the operating table, so I could not speak for myself, but would have said Yes to RFA. The tumor was in a precarious spot near some major portal veins and arteries, so they burned out as much as they could get to; their thinking initially was that they got all of it.

However, as a precaution, the surgeon had laid in my liver, radioactive seed markers around the liver area they were burning out. The theory was if some of the tumor still happened to be there, they would then get it with CyberKnife.

My tumor was too big for the CyberKnife by itself treatment was what we were told. There were remants of the tumor the MRI revealed, and they ordered 3 of these CyberKnife treatments to eliminate the tumor locally.

My surgeon was one of the early pioneers of the RFA procedure and he developed it and taught it all over the world, so this was his preference. He liked CyberKnife as a follow up to this procedure.

CyberKnife treatments get you tired like any radiation, but it does not last as long and you recover a little more quickly. What got to me was that I had to lay in this uncomfortable form they make for you. Your arms are up over your head for 2-3 hours each treatment and they go numb - and I mean go numb - I could barely lift my arms after the 3rd day. And if you had to go to the bathroom, they really got mad, because they had to reset all of the machinery and it would take 30 minutes or so to do that. I was constantly having them stop so I could pull my arms down for a rest, but after awhile nothing helps.

Anyway, that is how it went down and what my doctor wanted to do. I think each doctor follows his own protocol and prefers one thing or another.

RFA worked for me fortunately. And so did CyberKnife - the 1-2 punch.

Hope this helps, Lisa
-Craig

wow
Wow, Craig! Thanks for your indepth description of both procedures. It does give me info & also of what to expect w/ cyberknife, if I ever should experience or consider it.

Take care!!
Lisa