Y-90 High Lung Shunt: The Mitigation Playbook

Y-90 High Lung Shunt: The Mitigation Playbook

This episode is inspired by Professor of Interventional Radiology Dr. John Louie from Stanford IR and moves beyond the standard safety guidelines to provide a practical "playbook" for managing the high lung shunt patient, focusing on how to prevent fatal Radiation Pneumonitis (RP) without canceling the case. 

• The Hidden Threat: We define the stakes of Radiation Pneumonitis—a rare (0.1%) but highly lethal (40-60% mortality) complication with a delayed onset of 1-2 months.

• Predicting the Shunt: Learn to spot the "Phasic CT Sign"—early venous streaming during the arterial phase—which signals a massive tumor fistula before you even order the MAA scan.

• Mitigation Strategy A (Balloon Occlusion): We detail how placing a compliant balloon in the hepatic vein can reduce shunting by an order of magnitude (e.g., 20% down to 2%), effectively converting a contraindicated patient into a candidate. Pro Tip: Don't forget to occlude the accessory Inferior Right Hepatic Vein.

• Mitigation Strategy B (Embolization Trap): The discussion reveals a critical counter-intuitive rule: Never use small particles to plug a shunt. This actually increases the shunt percentage by increasing resistance in healthy tissue. You must use large embolics (Gelfoam, large coils) to physically plug the fistula.

• Glass vs. Resin: We explore real-world data suggesting the standard "30 Gray limit" may be too strict for Glass (which tolerates higher doses) and potentially too loose for Resin (where RP is more common).

Tune in to learn the specific techniques that let you safely treat the "untreatable" shunt.