Liver Abscess Formation After Laparoscopic Radiofrequency Ablation of Metastatic Colon Cancer

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) may be used to treat either benign or malignant tumors of the liver. Complications are relatively rare, with the most common being pyogenic liver abscess formation. Risk factors for pyogenic liver abscess formation include Child-Pugh class B or C cirrhosis, biliary tract disease, diabetes mellitus, and preexisting biliary diversion. Differentiating sterile post-ablative necrosis from abscess formation may be difficult on imaging as air may be considered a normal post-ablation finding. Treatment of pyogenic liver abscesses includes drainage and antibiotics targeting the most common organisms. This case presents a 71-year-old female with none of the above risk factors who developed a pyogenic liver abscess after undergoing RFA for a solitary liver metastasis secondary to biopsy-proven colonic adenocarcinoma. She was successfully treated with antibiotics and an indwelling percutaneous drain.