A 92-year-old great-grandmother from Harrogate, North Yorkshire, has become the first person in the United Kingdom to undergo a pioneering cancer treatment after being told her liver tumour was inoperable. Brenda Iveson was initially informed that conventional therapies, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, would be ineffective against the six-centimetre tumour discovered in her liver in late 2025.
However, medics at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust offered her a minimally invasive alternative: robotic-guided electrochemotherapy. This innovative procedure combines a small dose of chemotherapy with targeted electrical pulses. Surgeons employed robotic needle guidance to precisely position needles around the tumour, directing the treatment in a method never before performed in the UK. As a result, Mrs Iveson’s tumour has shrunk by approximately 80 per cent.
From hopeless to hopeful
Due to the tumour’s location and her frailty, Mrs Iveson had been told “nothing could be done” following her diagnosis. But when Professor Tze Min Wah, research and innovation lead for the interventional oncology programme at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and professor of interventional radiology at the University of Leeds, reviewed her case, she realised that the pioneering treatment could offer hope.
Clinicians used robotic needle guidance to accurately place needles around the tumour. This technology enhances the precision of electrochemotherapy, particularly for tumours in complex or hard-to-reach areas. The procedure was performed under general anaesthetic and does not use heat, making it safe for treating tumours near vital structures such as blood vessels and bile ducts. Leeds Teaching Hospitals confirmed this is the first time the treatment has been delivered alongside robotic guidance in a liver in the UK.
Patient's perspective
Mrs Iveson said: “I had been told there was nothing that could be done. So to be offered this treatment gave me real hope. I’m so glad I went ahead — it wasn’t painful or debilitating, and I feel very well.” She added: “Research may offer real results when there are no other options. You’re looked after so well, and it’s how medicine moves forward. If it helps me and future patients, then it’s worth it.”
Medical expert's insight
Professor Wah commented: “This treatment allowed us to offer an option where there would otherwise have been none. The addition of robotic guidance improves precision and opens up new possibilities, particularly for patients with tumours in difficult locations or who are not suitable for other treatments.” She elaborated: “Introducing robotic guidance really helped with this particular case; the needles provided more accurate placement and made the treatment times shorter. She is the UK first for the robotic guidance to insert the electrode chemotherapy needles into the tumour for treatment. She is doing well and she is very grateful.”
Liver cancer symptoms
The NHS lists main symptoms of liver cancer, which can include yellowing of the eyes or skin (jaundice), itchy skin, darker urine and paler stools, loss of appetite or weight loss without trying, fatigue, feeling generally unwell or flu-like symptoms, a lump in the right side of the abdomen, nausea, pain in the upper right abdomen or right shoulder, indigestion, feeling full quickly when eating, and a swollen abdomen.
Research and future prospects
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is currently the only hospital in the UK delivering liver cancer electrochemotherapy as part of a European research study. The study is assessing the safety and efficacy of the treatment for patients with liver cancer, as well as its impact on survival, quality of life, and pain. Current scans show that Mrs Iveson’s tumour is in a stable condition, and she is being monitored closely by experts at the trust. “We are all happy that something could be done that might prolong my life and which was not painful or debilitating in any way,” Mrs Iveson concluded. “It seems to be a very effective treatment and particularly useful in older patients who are frail.”
