Anatomical and clinical study of lingual arterial chemoembolization for tongue carcinoma

Objective The aim of this study was to develop an alternative treatment approach using lingual artery chemoembolization for certain tongue carcinomas. Study design Fifty-three lingual artery, postmortem, cast human specimens were studied. Seventy-eight patients with tongue carcinoma were chemoembolized with Car-platinum microcapsules. Results The deposition of the microcapsule embolism was approximately at the fifth- to the sixth-branch level of the deep lingual artery. The results complied with the anatomy, and the clinical outcomes were effective. Conclusions Lingual artery chemoembolization showed efficacy for curing carcinoma in the midmargin and midbody areas of the tongue, within the limitations of this study.