A Randomized Trial Comparing Radiofrequency Ablation and Surgical Resection for HCC Conforming to the Milan Criteria

Abstract

Surgical resection may provide better survival and lower recurrence rates than RFA for patients with HCC to the Milan criteria.

Propensity score‐matched comparison of non‐anatomical resection and radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with up to three tumours, each measuring up to 3 cm in diameter

“…A recent meta‐analysis28, including three RCTs11, 12, 13 and several retrospective studies14, 15, 16 comparing RFA with surgical resection, concluded that RFA was comparable to surgical resection in terms of survival, with lower complication rates but higher recurrence rates, consistent with the present results. A study29 comparing RFA with surgical resection for solitary small HCC using a propensity score model showed that surgical resection provided better OS and RFS than RFA.…”

“…To date, three RCTs11, 12, 13 and several retrospective studies14, 15, 16 comparing RFA with surgical resection have been reported, with contradictory findings reflecting different inclusion criteria.…”

The Roles of Doxorubicin in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

“…The technique works well with small HCC (< 3 cm), with an impressive 4-year survival rate of 66 -82 % as reported in Japan [99]. As the size of tumour grows beyond 5 cm, the efficacy of RFA is generally reduced [100], probably due to increased blood flow leading to heat loss and/or incomplete ablation. It has been reported that by performing hepatic intraarterial embolization ahead of RFA treatment (TACE-RFA), the heat sink effect mediated by hepatic arterial flow should be minimized [101].…”

Longterm survival outcomes of patients undergoing treatment with radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma and metastatic colorectal cancer liver tumors

“…Despite a randomized trial concluded that liver resection may provide better survival and lower local recurrence than RFA for HCC, data from a North American multicenter study suggested a survival benefit of 2.5 years with RFA for metastatic colorectal cancer. 17,18 While there are documented 5-year survival rates with RFA, there are only few studies to date evaluating the long-term efficacy (i.e. 10-year survival).…”