Intra-arterial chemotherapy for recurrent neoplasms

Twenty-eight intra-arterial infusions were carried out in 25 symptomatic patients all of whom had recurrent but still regionally confined disease. Most patients had had previous surgery and/or radiation. Four of these patients died as a direct result of the treatment and ten others had complications. Four patients are still alive but have recurrences. The average survival time of the dead patients was 4 1/2 months after treatment. Although this type of treatment was occasionally helpful, few of our patients actually benefited significantly from it. Furthermore, the substantial complication rate and mortality limits its use as a palliative measure.