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The Society of Interventional Radiology presents latest advances in minimally Invasive medicine The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) will present the latest research on treatments for individuals with kidney, prostate and bone cancer; herniated disks; peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and related complications; childbirth difficulties; and more at its 34thAnnual Scientific Meeting March 7-12 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, Calif.

Below are highlights of key interventional radiology studies being presented.

Cancer Advances
Using Focal Therapy/3-D Mapping for Prostate Cancer: Look, No Surgery
Interventional radiology offers good news for older men. The so-called "male lumpectomy"-a minimally invasive interventional radiology treatment for prostate cancer-is as effective as surgery in destroying diseased tumors and can be considered a first-line treatment. "Our data show that focal cryoablation is as good for prostate cancer control as any other treatment-including surgery, radiation and hormone therapy-but it is less invasive and traumatic for patients, preserves sexual and urinary function and has no major complications," says Gary Onik, M.D., who will present his 12-year study results. And details about a better mapping biopsy for determining the extent of prostate cancer will be given.

Killing Kidney Cancer With Cold: Remarkable Results
More than 75 percent of individuals who are diagnosed with kidney cancer have tumors that are 4 centimeters or less in size. A leading cancer center weighs in with three-year results about the safety and efficacy of freezing-or using cryoablation-for kidney cancer tumors. This interventional radiology treatment is shown to be near 100 percent effective for destroying localized tumors and as effective as laparoscopic surgery.

Seeing "Lazarus Effect": Relieving Painful Bone Tumor Pain
Interventional radiologists can improve the quality of life for patients who have very large metastases and who are living with cancer, offering them "miraculous" effects and pain relief with osteoplasty. Immediate good clinical results are being seen in metastatic bone disease patients-who have no other options, who are in pain, who have short life expectancies and who have dismal quality of life. This news should encourage more widespread application of this palliative interventional radiology treatment.

Back Pain Treatment
Treating Herniated Disks: Pain Relief From Unexpected Source
Back pain is the most common cause of job-related disability and a leading contributor to missed work. Having a herniated disk can affect how one performs everyday activities and can cause severe pain that influences everything one does. However, invasive surgery for herniated disks will become a thing of the past-especially given the positive results of minimally invasive interventional radiology oxygen/ozone injection treatments. "The interventional radiology oxygen/ozone treatment takes a minimalist approach. It's all about being gentle," says Kieran J. Murphy, M.D.

Women's Health: C-sections and Invasive Placentas
Studying Women's Health: Making Childbirth Safer
The rate of C-sections in the United States has risen greatly over the past decade, and, in 2005, 30 percent of all births were by C-section, according to recent statistics. Although generally a very safe procedure, complications of C-sections happen rarely and may include injuries to the blood vessels that can cause prolonged and sometimes life-threatening bleeding in the mother. Innovative, interventional radiology treatments are making childbirth safer for women who have C-sections that are complicated by massive bleeding and for those who suffer from the pregnancy condition of "invasive" placenta. The results of two studies detailing the effectiveness of minimally invasive treatments for pregnant women will be presented.

Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD)
Examining Heart Attack Risk: Surprising Look at Framingham Risk Scores (NHANES Data From More Than 6,000 Persons)
About 25 percent of all heart attacks or sudden cardiac deaths in the United States occur in individuals thought to be at low risk. If these individuals could be identified early on, primary prevention-such as initiating lifestyle changes and medical intervention directed at modifying risk factors (smoking cessation, blood glucose and blood pressure control, lowering cholesterol and exercise)-could be started before costlier and more intensive treatments are needed. Interventional radiologists have found that using common and readily available screening tests has the potential to prevent heart attacks in thousands of individuals not thought to be at risk.

Treating Peripheral Arterial Disease: Stem Cell Therapy Advances
Interventional radiologists are putting together the puzzle pieces of stem cell therapy to determine how to regenerate blood vessels to open clogged or narrowed arteries to treat peripheral arterial disease (PAD). A major research center presents its findings on how simple imaging can be used to view and locate transplanted stem cells and to confirm that they remain alive in the body once injected-with the help of a firefly-like bioluminescence imaging agent and seaweed "bubble."

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm
Recommending Treatment for "Silent Killer"
Interventional radiologists find that abdominal aortic aneurysms can be treated successfully by a minimally invasive procedure that eliminates the need to undergo a large abdominal incision from surgery or to clamp the aorta, the main artery from the heart. The durability and effectiveness of minimally invasive endovascular aneurysm repair-over an eight-year period and with nearly 500 patients-will be examined.

Chronic Kidney Disease/Dialysis Access
Finding that Age Doesn't Matter: AV Fistulas and Dialysis
For those individuals with chronic kidney disease, it doesn't matter if you're young or old: arteriovenous (AV) fistulas remain the gold standard for maintaining access to one's circulatory system to provide life-sustaining dialysis. The results of this comparison study provide information on how interventional radiologists maintain access to chronic kidney disease patients' circulatory systems to provide life-sustaining dialysis-no matter one's age.

Source: SIR