Microwave ablation for treating liver metastases

Microwave ablation aims to destroy tumour cells using heat, which creates localised areas of tissue necrosis with minimal damage to surrounding normal tissues.

The procedure can be done using local anaesthesia or with the patient under general anaesthesia, either percutaneously or during open or laparoscopic surgery. A probe is advanced into each targeted lesion under imaging guidance and the tumour is ablated by delivering high‑frequency microwave energy. Multiple pulses of energy may be delivered during a session, and multiple probes can be used to treat larger tumours.

A variety of different microwave devices can be used for this procedure.