What is HIPEC surgery? (Anai Kothari, MD)

Anai Kothari, MD, surgical oncologist, talks about heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) — how it works and when it is used. Dr. Kothari is part of the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin HIPEC team.

HIPEC actually is a part of a typical surgical procedure that we offer for patients with advanced peritoneal-based disease, and it stands for heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy which basically describes what is happening during that portion of the operation. We will start by doing a major part of the procedure and then follow that up by infusing or perfusing a heated chemotherapy directly into the abdominal cavity. The goal of that is twofold. One, to help actually treat the tumor directly, and then also ensure that we're able to get adequate treatment directly at the peritoneal lining within the abdomen.