The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of hepatic arterial port implantation using a 2.9-Fr coaxial microcatheter for hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the long-term follow-up period. Our study subjects were 176 patients with unresectable HCC who underwent hepatic arterial port implantation using a 2.9-Fr coaxial microcatheter via the femoral approach. A 2.9-Fr microcatheter with a side hole was introduced into the hepatic artery through a 5-Fr catheter. We determined the possible length of HAIC, starting with hepatic arterial port implantation and ending with the manifestation of technical difficulties or patient death. We also recorded the technical success rate, the time required for the procedure, and the complications encountered. The median duration of HAIC was 4.3 months (range 0.4-51.6 months) and the predictable cumulative rate of hepatic arterial port functioning at 6-, 12-, and 24 months was 75.1%, 60.9%, and 44.6%, respectively. Our technical success rate was 99.4% (175/176), and the mean time required for the procedure was 121 min. Complications were migration of the infusion hole (8.6%, 15/175), hepatic artery damage (5.7%, 10/175), port-catheter system occlusion (5.7%, 10/175), and problems involving the port or the puncture site (8.0%, 14/175).
Our study demonstrates that the technical success rate of hepatic arterial port implantation using a coaxial microcatheter was high but that the incidence of port-catheter system occlusion and catheter dislocation was higher than in conventional methods. Our technique is another option to treat patients with HCC for whom conventional techniques cannot be used.