Quantification of perfusion reduction by using 2D-perfusion angiography following transarterial chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads

Purpose: To analyze the feasibility of 2D-perfusion angiography (2D-PA) for the quantification of perfusion reduction following transarterial chemoembolization with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE). Methods: Overall, 24 DEB-TACE procedures in 19 patients were included. To quantify changes in tumor perfusion following DEB-TACE using 2D-PA, the acquired digital subtraction angiography (DSA) series were post-processed. A reference region-of-interest (ROI) in a main hepatic artery and two, distal target ROIs in embolized tumor tissue and in non-target liver parenchyma were placed in corresponding areas on DSA pre- and post-DEB-TACE. The time to peak (TTP), peak density (PD), and the area under the curve (AUC) were assessed and the ratios reference ROI/target ROIs were calculated. Results: In the embolized tumor, the 2D-PA ratios changed significantly (p < 0.05) after DEB-TACE, whereas no significant change was observed for non-target liver parenchyma (p > 0.05). PD_tumor/PD_inflow differed significantly to PD_parenchyma/PD_inflow pre-DEB-TACE (p < 0.0001), likewise AUC_tumor/AUC_inflow to AUC_parenchyma/AUC_inflow (p < 0.0001) with higher values in tumor tissue. The post-DEB-TACE ratios of AUC decreased significantly in the tumor tissue compared to the non-target liver parenchyma (p < 0.05). Conclusion: 2D-PA offers an objective approach to quantify the immediate perfusion reduction of embolized tumor tissue following DEB-TACE and may therefore be used to monitor peri-interventional stasis and to quantify technical success.