Fluorescence-guided surgery for hepatoblastoma with indocyanine green

Abstract

Fluorescence-guided surgery with indocyanine green (ICG) for malignant hepatic tumors has been gaining more attention with technical advancements. Since hepatoblastomas (HBs) possess similar features to hepatocellular carcinoma, fluorescence-guided surgery can be used for HBs, as aggressive surgical resection, even for distant metastases of HBs, often contributes positively to R0 (complete) resection and subsequent patient survival. Despite a few caveats, fluorescence-guided surgery allows for the more sensitive identification of lesions that may go undetected by conventional imaging or be invisible macroscopically. This leads to precise resection of distant metastatic tumors as well as primary liver tumors.