my brother, 44 yrs old.had anastomosis in 2007 due to colon ca.went for 6cycle oral xeloda.he was on remission for 3 yrs. but had another surgery june 2010 for recurrent. had 23session of radiotherapy. after his ct scan it was found out he had multiple nodules and tumor 5x3cm in the liver. diagnosed as stage IV. he went for 6cycle of xeloda and oxiloplatin.the tumor shrink and nodules reduced. in february 2011, he was scheduled for radiofrequency ablation. however, he had another CT last week and the nodules are again multiple. the tumor increased in size after 4months from the last chemo. we are advised to see his oncologist again, for possible chemo. please tell me up front, what would be his chance to recover at least to go for the radio frequency ablation? i know that it is only palliative. but we have to try all possible options. thank you for your advise.
Hi, Thanks for writing in. Unfortunately multiple liver lesions cannot be treated completely. Colon cancer causes liver metastasis in half of the patients even after surgery. Radiofrequency ablation is not for all patients and requires certain criteria to be adhered to for response to treatment. Since you know that the condition has become palliative, there is a possibility to extend his survival by giving chemotherapy agents which will reduce new blood vessel formation and also inhibit growth. There is combination chemotherapy with medicine like explain which are known to work in case of colon cancer with liver metastasis. Please do not worry.