Professor Franco Orsi, MD, Medical Director of the Unit of Interventional Radiology at the European Institute of Oncology was awarded The Symposium on Clinical Interventional Oncology 2010 Best Poster Award by Dr. Shaun Samuels, Lead Course Director, for his poster presentation entitled; 'Micro-Bland Embolization Combined with Radiofrequency Ablation for Treating Complex Hepatic tumours'.

Orsi's poster as well as an oral abstract, were presented to a capacity audience at this year's Pre-ISET Course, Clinical Interventional Cardiology (CIO), in Hollywood, Florida.

In 18 patients affected by single unresectable liver tumours or unwilling to be resected, Orsi used a combination therapy of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) immediately after micro-bland transhepatic arterial embolization (MBTAE). The technique pioneered by Orsi and the group at the European Institute of Oncology has demonstrated precise and ample tumour control.

During the procedure 40 and/or 100 micron Embozene Microspheres are used to block the micro vessels that supply blood to the tumours causing an additional reduction in tumour size by eliminating the blood supply and thermal dispersion. Orsi's team then follows this with RFA. In this combined procedure, the use of Embozene Microspheres has proven to increase the success and overcome previous limitations associated with RFA.

Orsi went on to state that technical success was achieved in all patients, with excellent results. All patients are alive and all tumour volumes have decreased within very safe margins. Orsi's poster concluded to state that MBTAE has been carried out only with very small micro-spheres in order to induce a deep parenchymal ischemia for enhancing the thermal effect by RFA. Combined therapy, in our series, has improved local results, allowing
for a radical ablation of the so called "complex liver lesions". However, the series is limited and further prospective studies are needed for validating the combined approach.

About Embozene Microspheres:

Embozene Microspheres are the only microspheres offering 10 tightly calibrated sizes, each color-enhanced with a different color for increased procedural safety. They are composed of a hydrogel core and an exterior shell of Polyzene(R)-F, CeloNova's proprietary polymer which is proven to be anti-inflammatory and bacterial-resistant. Embozene Microspheres have been approved by the FDA for the treatment of hypervascular tumours and arteriovenous malformations. The 75, 1100, and 1300 micron sizes are not yet available in the US.