Intrahepatic arterial injections of cisplatin-phosphatidylcholine-Lipiodol suspension in two unresectable hepatoblastoma cases.

Two cases with unresectable hepatoblastoma were treated by intrahepatic arterial injections of cisplatin-phosphatidylcholine-Lipiodol suspension (CPLS), combined with systemic chemotherapy. Unfortunately, the first patient who was given three injections of CPLS in association with systemic chemotherapy died of progressive disease 18 months after the commencement of the therapy. However, the second patient who received about 1 year of systemic chemotherapy followed by three injections of CPLS prior to subtotal tumor resection, plus four injections after surgery, is now alive and healthy 22 months after the commencement of treatment, with no detectable serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), although the AFP level on admission was 695,000 ng/ml. In the surgical specimens of case 2, there were areas with Lipiodol deposits rich in platinum and replaced by marked fibrosis around necrotic tumor nodules. Intrahepatic arterial injection of CPLS in combination with systemic chemotherapy and surgery should be considered as an effective method for unresectable cases.