A Reading on Cryotherapy

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A Reading Presented to 

The faculty of Nursing Department
Josephine Magno, RN, MN

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In Partial fulfilment of the

Requirements in NCM-212

By:

Karl Angelo Montano, Stn

BSN 3B

September 11, 2020

 “Cryoablation In The Management Of Breast
Cancer: Evidence To Date”

Bibliography
Pusceddu, C., Paliogiannis, P., Nigri, G., & Fancellu, A. (2019). Cryoablation
in the management of breast cancer: Evidence to date. Breast Cancer:
Targets and Therapy, Volume 11, 283-
292. https://doi.org/10.2147/bctt.s197406

Summary

As regards breast cancer, a large amount of articles in the recent

literature reports on the use of radiofrequency, microwave ablation,
cryoablation, interstitial laser therapy, and focused ultrasound in different
clinical scenarios. The following terms were used for the search:
"Cryoablation", or "Cryotherapy, or" cryosurgery", and "breast cancer", or
"breast diseases". 1,8 Cryoablation For Early Breast Cancer Advances in
systemic treatments and early diagnosis due to mammographic screening
have led to a progressive de-escalation of breast cancer treatment towards
less invasive forms of loco-regional interventions. 18 Cryoablation for breast
cancer represents an extension of its use in benign breast diseases. Some
studies enrolled a small number of patients at various stages of disease,18,33
in others surgical tumor removal was performed after cryoablation,31,34 and
in others again percutaneous ablation was the only modality of treatment,6,35
thus reliable conclusions on the usefulness of cryoablation in the subgroup
with early breast cancer could not be drawn.
The role of cryoablation in early breast cancer is under investigation in
two ongoing trials in the US, the FROST activated in 2016, and Ice3 activated
in 2014.36,37 Both studies seek to evaluate the role of cryoablation instead of
surgery in women aged 50 years or older, having as primary endpoint
assessment of 5-year local recurrence rate. 1 Cryoablation In Patients With
Metastatic Disease The effectiveness of removing the primary tumor in
patients presenting with metastatic breast cancer remains under debate.
Cryoablation In Patients Unsuitable Of Surgery Cryoablation is nowadays
widely used to treat breast cancer and other solid tumors, as this technique
bears the major advantage of allowing accurate monitoring of iceball
formation with different imaging modalities avoiding the use of contrast
medium, i.e. unenhanced computed tomography. Cryoablation Of Breast
Cancer In Comparison With Other Ablative Techniques Few studies have
compared cryoablation with other percutaneous ablative methods for breast
cancer. 7 Imaging Follow-Up After Cryoablation Treatment The extent of the
ice ball caused by cryoablation can be recognized on US, CT scan, and MRI.8
However, timing and imaging methods of surveillance after breast cancer
cryoablation remain to be better defined.
40,41 After cryoablation treatment, damaged cancer cells stay located
in the treated area, thus MRI may be the most accurate image tool for
evaluating responses to cryoablation. In an experimental model of triple-
negative breast cancer, Chandra et al tested cryoablation combined with
Meriva founding that cryoablation delayed the development of pulmonary
metastases on the short term, and that post-cryoablation Meriva
administration was significantly better in delaying the development of
pulmonary metastases, and affected survival on the long-term period. 19 In a
recent study, breast cryoablation was combined with immune therapy in 19
women scheduled for mastectomy in whom pre-operative tumor cryoablation,
single-dose Ipilimumab, or both were administrated. 49 State Of The Art And
Future Perspectives Many studies have demonstrated that cryoablation
represents a useful ablation method for patients with breast cancer, being a
well-tolerated procedure that permits to obtain complete tumor necrosis in a
high percentage of cases. In particular, checkpoint blockade along with other
treatments such as systemic therapies and localized therapy including tumor
cryoablation seems to be a promising strategy in the treatment of breast
cancer.

Reaction
The article is about Cryoablation in the management of Breast cancer
Cryotherapy, which literally means “cold therapy,” is a technique where the
body is exposed to extremely cold temperatures for several minutes.
Cryotherapy can be delivered to just one area, or you can opt for whole-body
cryotherapy. Localized cryotherapy can be administered in a number of ways,
including through ice packs, ice massage, coolant sprays, ice baths, and even
through probes administered into tissue. The theory for whole-body
cryotherapy (WBC) is that by immersing the body in extremely cold air for
several minutes, you could receive a number of health benefits.
 I was amazed by the article that I have read because this the first time I
heard about cryotherapy. All this time I thought that the only management for
cancer is through radiation and chemotherapy. This type of intervention is
also good for people who are economically deprived because this is cheaper
than other interventions. I hope that there will be more researches about this
kind of intervention because it can really help a lot of people.

Even though there are numerous advantages of cryosurgery, most

disadvantages have constrained the market growth. Few side effects of
cryosurgery can be stated as hypopigmentation, erythema and pain. Less
effectiveness of cryotherapy is majorly hampering the growth of cryotherapy
market. Also, insufficient clinical information, and low awareness has resulted
in low reimbursement. Conversely, as the technology is advancing, the
downsides are expected to fade away, which will drive the market of
cryotherapy in the years to come.

In various incidences of cancers, cryosurgery offers benefits like less

complications, low pain and short period of hospital stay that is ideal for
conventional surgeries. This will ultimately increase the demand for
cryotherapy, thereby boosting cryotherapy industry. Cryotherapy is also
regarded advantageous for patients that are non-responsive to treatments
and cannot be treated. Owing to the increase in cancer patients worldwide,
the market is also predicted to grow in the near future. Additionally, the rising
investment in healthcare segment by the emerging nations will also stimulate
the growth of the market of cryotherapy.