Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2005. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Sep 7, 2005; 11(33): 5239-5240
Published online Sep 7, 2005. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v11.i33.5239
Radiofrequency ablation for incidentally identified primary intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma
Witold Zgodzinski, N. Joseph Espat
Witold Zgodzinski, Second Department of General Surgery, Skubiszewski Medical University of Lublin, Staszica 16, 20-081 Lublin, Poland
N. Joseph Espat, Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, University of Illinois at Chicago, 840 South Wood Street, Chicago, IL 60612, United States
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Dr. N. Joseph Espat, MD, MS, FACS, Department of Surgery, UIC, 840 South Wood Street, Room 435E, Chicago, IL 60612, USA. jespat@uic.edu
Telephone: +1-312-355-1493 Fax: +1-312-355-1987
Received: December 14, 2004
Revised: December 18, 2004
Accepted: December 20, 2004
Published online: September 7, 2005
Abstract

Cholangiocarcinoma is the second most common primary hepato-biliary malignancy. The majority of patients with primary hepatic tumors are not suitable candidates for resection, due to advanced stage of the disease at presentation, anatomic limitations and medical co-morbidities. At present, radiofrequency ablation (RFA) may offer an alternative, feasible and safe therapy for selected patients with hepatic tumors, who are not otherwise candidates for hepatic resection. Herein, we present the case of successful RFA in a patient with a solitary, primary intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The patient remained free of disease 24 mo after the procedure, and is still followed up. This is the first report of RFA application in the treatment of primary intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Keywords: Cholangiocarcinoma, Radiofrequency ablation, Hepatic tumor