Abstract
BackgroundThe goal of this study was to compare the postoperative results of liver resection and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (3–5 cm).Patients and methodsWe retrospectively collected 122 cases of small solitary HCC treated at our center from Jan 2011 to Dec 2015, with diameters in the range of 3–5 cm. According to the treatment program received at our center, the patients were divided into liver resection (72 patients) and RFA (50 patients) groups.ResultIn comparison with the RFA group, the resection group had a longer operative time, greater intraoperative blood loss (P < 0.01), more hepatic inflow occlusion, and a longer postoperative hospital stay (P < 0.01). The 1-, 3-, and 5-year expected overall survival rates and tumor-free survival rates were comparable between the two groups. Cox regression analysis showed that neither resection nor RFA was a significant risk factor for overall or tumor-free survival in HCC.ConclusionsFor solitary HCC of 3–5 cm in diameter, RFA can achieve better in-hospital clinical results and similar long-term outcomes than resection and can be considered for wide application, especially for central-location cases.
Highlights
The goal of this study was to compare the postoperative results of liver resection and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (3–5 cm)
A unified understanding has not been reached, analysis of effectiveness has generally indicated that long-term survival and tumor recurrence are similar between these methods for small liver tumors with a diameter ≤ 3 cm [5]; for liver tumors with a diameter > 5 cm, it is currently believed that RFA cannot achieve the effect of radical treatment [6]
Our results indicated that the tumor diameter for the RFA group was slightly larger than that for the resection group (3.8 vs. 3.7 cm), this difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.528)
Summary
The goal of this study was to compare the postoperative results of liver resection and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (3–5 cm). For the treatment of early-stage liver cancer, commonly accepted radical treatments include liver transplant (LT), liver resection, and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Liver resection and RFA are a unified understanding has not been reached, analysis of effectiveness has generally indicated that long-term survival and tumor recurrence are similar between these methods for small liver tumors with a diameter ≤ 3 cm [5]; for liver tumors with a diameter > 5 cm, it is currently believed that RFA cannot achieve the effect of radical treatment [6]. This study was performed to comprehensively examine the efficacy and safety of liver cancer (diameter 3–5 cm) treatment with resection and RFA using data collected at our center
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