HackensackUMC Advances a New Approach to Treating Pre-Malignant Tumors in the Pancreas

On Nov 20, 2015

Hackensack University Medical Center is providing some patients with a new approach to treating pre-malignant tumors in the pancreas.  HackensackUMC is the first hospital in New Jersey to offer endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided focal radio frequency ablation (RFA) in the pancreas.

RFA uses high-frequency alternating electrical current to ablate diseased tissue and has been used to treat various tumors. Equipped with the Emcision Habib RFA device, which received full approval from the Food and Drug Administration earlier this year, HackensackUMC physicians can now ablate small lesions in the pancreas safely and accurately.

“Although the technology is new, targeted RFA in the pancreas is extremely promising and offers hope as a non-surgical option to treat carefully-selected patients,” says Rosario Ligresti, M.D., FASGE, chief, Division of Gastroenterology and director of the Pancreas Center at HackensackUMC.

For now, this approach will concentrate solely on the ablation of pre-malignant cysts and solid tumors in the pancreas that are smaller than two centimeters.

“We take any opportunity to nip pancreatic cancer in the bud,” said Dr. Ligresti. “This is an outpatient procedure that is low stress and potentially highly effective.”

November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month.  Looking ahead, HackensackUMC together with the National Pancreas Foundation (NPF) will sponsor a fundraising dinner with live entertainment in January. Details will follow.

HackensackUMC is one of only 30 designated National Pancreas Foundation Centers of Excellence in the nation.  NPF Centers are at premier healthcare facilities nationwide that focus on multidisciplinary treatment of pancreatic disease, treating the whole patient with a focus on the best possible outcomes and an improved quality of life.

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