Chemoembolization
Chemoembolization is a minimally-invasive treatment for liver cancer that combines the direct delivery of concentrated chemotherapy and a blocking agent into the blood vessel that feeds the cancer. The potency of the anti-cancer drug is effectively increased in chemoembolization because the blocking agents, called emboli, help to render the cancer more susceptible to the chemotherapy by blocking the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the tumor. 
How Does the Procedure Work?
Chemoembolization works against cancer in two ways. Firstly, it puts a high dose of chemotherapy straight into the tumor, with less exposure to the entire body. Secondly, the procedure cuts the supply of blood to the tumor, trapping the anti-cancer drugs at the site.
How is the Procedure Performed?
Marc L. Friedman, MD, is Chief of Vascular and Interventional Radiology at the S. Mark Taper Foundation Imaging Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Dr. Friedman and a team of highly-trained technologists and nurses perform this procedure in the hospital setting. Using X-ray guidance, a specially trained interventional radiologist inserts a thin tube, called a catheter into an artery in the groin. Once the catheter is positioned in the branches of the artery that are feeding the tumor, the anti-cancer drugs and blocking agents are then injected, specifically targeting the tumor. Additional X-rays will be taken to confirm that the entire tumor has been treated. At the end of the procedure, the catheter will be removed and the tiny opening in the skin is then covered with a dressing. No sutures are needed.
