Pre-Operative Tumor Embolization

Tumors of the head and neck often develop a significant blood supply, raising the risk of excessive bleeding during surgical removal. Interventional Neuroradiologists use Endovascular Embolization to cut off the blood supply to these tumors, enabling a quicker, simpler surgery with far less blood loss.

The minimally invasive embolization procedure is performed several days prior to surgery. First, the physician conducts a Diagnostic Angiogram to identify the source of the tumor’s blood supply. Then, a soft, flexible catheter is fed via a sheath inserted inside an artery of the groin to the tumor site and various substances, such as small particles or glue, are injected to block the blood flow.