This study assesses the therapeutic efficacy of radiolabeled
iodized oil on a patient with
hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). An
iodized oil, such as
Lipiodol or
Ethiodol (Savage Laboratories, Melville, NY), was retained selectively in the
tumor vessels of large
tumors as well as in the daughter
tumors of HCC for long periods of time following
intra-arterial injection into the hepatic artery proper. A small fraction of the stable
iodine (1 pg of I-127) of the 37%
iodine by weight in
Ethiodol was replaced by the I-131 with 100% efficiency. A patient with HCC was injected with I-131
Ethiodol into the hepatic artery. Sequential imaging of organs such as the liver, lung, stomach, and thyroid over an eight-day period demonstrated a high
tumor-to-normal-liver ratio and a negligible amount of radioactivity in these organs. These findings indicate that I-131
Ethiodol, or
Ethiodol labeled with other pure beta emitters, such as Y-90 or P-32, will be effective delivering a high internal radiation dose to HCC with a small radiation effect to normal tissues. To evaluate its potential as a radiotherapeutic agent for HCC, the kinetics, biodistribution, determination of absolute activity in the
tumor following
intra-arterial injection of I-131
Ethiodol will be studied in the future. At the same time, an effort will be made to label
Ethiodol with Y-90 and P-32.