Contrast-enhanced ultrasound no aid for metastasis detection

(HealthDay)—Contrast-enhanced laparoscopic ultrasonography (CE-LUS) does not appear to increase the detection rate of liver metastasis during robotic-assisted surgery for primary colorectal cancer (CRC), according to a study published online Nov. 13 in the Journal of Clinical Ultrasound.

Signe Bremholm Ellebæk, M.D., from Odense University Hospital in Denmark, and colleagues assessed the potential clinical value of CE-LUS as a screening tool for liver metastases during robotic-assisted surgery for primary CRC among 50 consecutive patients.

The researchers found that patients were equally distributed between stage I, II, and III classification. CE-LUS did not detect any liver metastasis, as was confirmed by follow-up using contrast-enhanced computed tomography imaging at three and 12 months postoperatively. CE-LUS was easy to perform and no complications were reported.

"The use of CE-LUS as a screening modality for detection of liver metastasis cannot be recommended based on this study, but larger controlled studies on high-risk patients seem relevant," the authors write.