TALKING MORE ABOUT POSSIBLE TREATMENT OPTIONS
It is sometimes considered prudent to wait until the hemangioendothelioma declares its intentions, before starting to fight back. However, there are times when treatment may be indicated.
1) Surgery:
If you have isolated disease, ie a tumor in one place where it can be removed, then surgery to remove the one tumor can be the best chance for a cure and this is almost certainly the way to go. Surgery with wide margins is often the best option when possible.
2) Liver transplantation
Liver transplantation can be very helpful in controlling disease and symptoms when there are many tumors in the liver. The success with liver transplantation for EHE patients is generally good, however the disease can recur in the new liver in approximately 25-30% of cases.
3) Standard chemotherapy and radiation therapy
These methods are not usually very effective in EHE due to its slow growing nature. However, some success has been shown with localised treatments which are still experimental, such as irreversible electroporation (IRE).
4) Newer non-surgical therapies
Newer non-surgical therapies are currently being evaluated including various antiangiogenics that inhibit formation of new blood vessels. Clinical trials are needed to test the efficacy of anti-angiogenesis versus surgery or other treatments like interferon or kinase inhibitors. It might be useful to ask your doctor the exact mechanism of action of any drug he recommends so that you know what category of treatment it falls in.
Future treatments:
As the genetic alteration responsible for EHE has now been found, it is now possible to start research to identify the specific molecules that contribute to the growth of EHE. Then the approach, called “targeted therapy” might theoretically be applied to EHE; it has been successfully used to identify useful treatments for other cancers. Obviously, research is the key, including laboratory and clinical research. CRAVAT is currently looking for ways to fund this research through the CRAVAT foundation.
If you would like to contribute financially or if you have suggestions for possible research sponsors please contact CRAVATfoundation.org. Our goal is to fund research that will help lead to a treatment for EHE.