Pilot Study of an Implantable Microdevice for In Situ Evaluation of Drug Response in Patients With Colorectal Liver Metastasis

Microdevices have been used to ascertain in vivo drug response, which can lead to improved cancer treatment delivery; however, they have not been evaluated for liver tumors. This is a prospective, phase 1 safety study of percutaneous placement and surgical retrieval of a microdevice in patients with liver metastasis from colorectal cancer. The device will be implanted percutaneously 3-5 days prior to scheduled resection of colorectal liver metastasis (CLM) and then removed en bloc with the tumor. Patients will be monitored to ensure that the device's placement and retrieval does not result in increased complication rates within 14 days of surgery. To assess feasibility, the tissue surrounding the microdevice will be analyzed to assess the diffusion of the drugs from the device into the tissue and whether the therapeutic effect of diffusing chemotherapy +/- immune-modulating drugs has an impact on the surrounding tissue.