NanoKnife tackles hard-to-reach or dangerous tumors

AUSTIN -- Imagine being told you have cancer but doctors can't operate because the tumor is too difficult to reach or major blood vessels, arteries and nerves surround it. Chemotherapy has been about the only option until now. The NanoKnife System is now tackling tumors that were previously too tough difficult or dangerous to reach.

The NanoKnife system work by sending high-voltage currents that bore holes in cell membranes causing the cells to die. The electrical pulses are delivered through needle-like probes. Irene Tristan is among the first in Austin to undergo the NanoKnife procedure for a cancerous tumor in her liver.

"The tumor was real close to the blood vessel that supplies blood to my liver, so a normal operation would be out of the question," said Tristan.

"We've had a way of treating tumors with probes for years now with different types of energy, but this is the first time we've been able to treat tumors that were actually wrapped around blood vessels, wrapped around bile ducts and structures you couldn't remove," said Shaun McKenzie, M.D., a surgical oncologist at St. David's South Austin Medical Center.

Other technologies work by using extreme heat or cold on tumors, but they can damage everything in the targeted area. McKenzie says the NanoKnife system causes cell damage to the tumor without damaging any surrounding tissue.

"The tissues that are wrapped around blood vessels and bile ducts don't have a lot of cells in them," said McKenzie. "They're spared the damage of a tumor which is very cellular, therefore you can sort of sharp shoot the tumor and protect the other structures."

The proof is in the picture that is the MRI.

"You can see her blood vessel running in tact right through that cavity," said McKenzie. "It's just like we spared it and cored everything around it out."

After years enduring chemo with no measurable results, Irene is thankful she is among the first to be treated with NanoKnife system.

"I was just so happy," she said. "I mean, oh my God! It's gone!"

Click here to learn more about the NanoKnife System used at St. David's South Austin Medical Center.