RCH performs first radioembolization in Riverside County

Riverside, CA – Riverside Community Hospital is pleased to announce they have performed the first Radioembolization in Riverside County. Radioembolization is a procedure where radiation is injected directly into the liver to destroy cancer cells and is used to treat primary cancer of the liver and cancer which has spread from the bowel and other organs.  The procedure if often referred to as “Y90” as utilizes an isotope of yttrium.

The procedure was performed by Vinay Yagnik, MD, Interventional Radiologist at Riverside Community Hospital. “This procedure has been two years in the making,” said Dr. Vinay Yagnik. “Several components had to be in place for Riverside Community Hospital to be able to perform this procedure, including having a new state-of-the-art operating room that allows for multiple imaging methods to be used simultaneously along with a dedicated team and the right patient.”

Dr. Yagnik inserted a catheter into groin of the patient and passed into the liver where the tumor was located. Microscopic beads, which carry radiation, were injected into the tumor to destroy the cancer cells. The beads are only about 3mm deep, protecting the patient and those around him, from radiation. After about eleven days, the beads will ‘die off’ and dissolve.

The patient’s recovery is going as expected and they will return in 3-4 weeks for a second Radioembolization on another liver tumor.