What to expect

You will be given a date to start electrochemotherapy after you have signed the consent form.

You have a blood test before you start electrochemotherapy. Your healthcare team also checks you can have anaesthesia and takes photos to compare before and after treatment. They tell you if you need any other tests before starting treatment.

If you’re having electrochemotherapy with sedation or general anaesthetic you will need to:

• stop eating 6 hours before electrochemotherapy
• stop drinking 2 hours before electrochemotherapy

Tell your healthcare team about any medicines you currently take. They let you know if you need to stop any before electrochemotherapy.

If you need help getting to the hospital for treatment, speak to a member of staff caring for you.

InspECT registry

Before you have electrochemotherapy, you will be asked if you consent to being on the InspECT registry.

The InspECT registry is a list of information about people who have electrochemotherapy. It helps researchers to understand the short and long-term effect of electrochemotherapy on cancer.

During electrochemotherapy

Electrochemotherapy can be given with local anaesthetic, sedation or general anaesthetic.

• Local anaesthetic is used to numb part of your body during electrochemotherapy. It’s given by injection. You will be awake for the procedure.
• General anaesthetic or sedation means you will be asleep and will not feel any pain. It’s given using an oxygen mask and an injection.

Once you have been given an anaesthetic you will have electrochemotherapy. A low dose of chemotherapy is injected into your vein or the cancer. An electric probe is put on your skin over where the cancer is. This probe gives out an electric pulse which changes the outside of the cancer cells. This change makes it easier for the chemotherapy to get inside the cancer cells and destroy them.

Electrochemotherapy usually takes between 10 and 60 minutes. It will be done by a specialist who has training to do the procedure.