In less time than it takes to drink a cup of coffee, a tumour can be treated at Windsor Regional Hospital using new technology.
Microwave ablations will be treated on an outpatient basis in the hospital's diagnostic imaging unit.
In the past, the hospital used radiofrequency ablation, but the new technology is faster and less painful. The patient can go home after just a few hours.
Interventional radiologist Dr. Matthew Rochon used the technology extensively in Toronto and after two years of working to bring it to Windsor, the first procedure was conducted on October 16.
It was followed by a second procedure that day, and a third on October 19 on a patient's liver.
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The patient is sedated before a 2 mm incision is made in the skin. A 12-inch straight wire is inserted into the tumour for four to six minutes burning the tumour.
Using the older technology, the procedure took 20 minutes and the patient could move, making it difficult for the doctor to kill the cancer.
"This basically leads to better outcomes overall for the patient in terms of treatment of cancer, and in terms of the experience going through the procedure," explained Rochon.
The only drawback is the treatment can not be used near a vital organ.
"We are burning a little zone of normal tissue around the tumour to make sure we have got all of the tumour," he continued.