What is hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) therapy?
Hepatic arterial infusion therapy is a treatment for colorectal liver cancer. It uses a drug delivery system to infuse cancer-fighting medication on a continuous basis directly into the liver, the most common place for colon cancer to spread. HAI therapy is based on the principle of improving therapeutic value by targeting the site of the tumor while minimizing systemic exposure and resultant side effects. HAI therapy commonly uses a small, surgically implantable pump and a catheter that carries the drug from the pump to the hepatic artery. How is HAI therapy used in fighting cancer? HAI therapy is used for site-specific drug delivery of chemotherapy for patients with colorectal liver cancer. Each year 160,000 cases of this disease are diagnosed in the United States. Half of these patients will suffer recurrence after initial therapy and it is estimated that, for 70 percent of those who suffer recurrence, their colon cancer will spread, or metastasize, to the liver. After surgery to re
