Abstract
Bone and soft tissue tumor ablation has reached widespread acceptance in the locoregional
treatment of various benign and malignant musculoskeletal (MSK) lesions. Many principles
of ablation learned elsewhere in the body are easily adapted to the MSK system, particularly
the various technical aspects of probe/antenna design, tumoricidal effects, selection
of image guidance, and methods to reduce complications. Despite the common use of
thermal and chemical ablation procedures in bone and soft tissues, there are few large
clinical series that show longitudinal benefit and cost-effectiveness compared with
conventional methods, namely, surgery, external beam radiation, and chemotherapy.
Percutaneous radiofrequency ablation of osteoid osteomas has been evaluated the most
and is considered a first-line treatment choice for many lesions. Palliation of painful
metastatic bone disease with thermal ablation is considered safe and has been shown
to reduce pain and analgesic use while improving quality of life for cancer patients.
Procedure-related complications are rare and are typically easily managed. Similar
to all interventional procedures, bone and soft tissue lesions require an integrated
approach to disease management to determine the optimum type of and timing for ablation
techniques within the context of the patient care plan.
Keywords
radiofrequency ablation - interventional radiology - cryoablation - microwave ablation
- bone and soft tissue - tumors
