PURPOSE: To compare the clinical efficacy of surgical resection (SR) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (SHC; ≥ 5 cm in diameter). METHODS: The clinical and follow-up data for 88 patients with SHC, including 42 cases of SR and 46 cases of RFA, were analyzed. RESULTS: The mean follow-up time was 34.36 ± 16.93 (range 6-72) months. The 1-, 3- and 5-year tumor-free survival rates were 85.4, 40.9, and 29.2% for the SR group and 82.6, 27.7, and 16.4% for the RFA group (p=0.51). The mean tumor-free survival for the SR and RFA groups was 32.78 and 29.39 months (p=0.51), respectively. The cumulative survival rates were 100. 63.7, and 50.4% for the SR group and 100, 66.3 and 37.4% for the RFA group (p=0.67). The average survival time was 50.78 and 47.62 months (p=0.67) for the SR and RFA groups, respectively. We divided the tumors into a ≤ 3 cm diameter group and a 3-5 cm diameter group and found that the data for both groups were not statistically different. Cox multivariate analysis indicated that the number of tumors significantly affected overall survival (p=0.02) after the effects of various factors were excluded. The overall tumor-free survival and overall survival of the SR and RFA groups were not statistically different. CONCLUSIONS: RFA is safe and effective for the treatment of SHC, with a long-term efficacy similar to that achieved by SR. Therefore, RFA is a preferred treatment method for SHC.
PURPOSE: To compare the clinical efficacy of surgical resection (SR) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (SHC; ≥ 5 cm in diameter). METHODS: The clinical and follow-up data for 88 patients with SHC, including 42 cases of SR and 46 cases of RFA, were analyzed. RESULTS: The mean follow-up time was 34.36 ± 16.93 (range 6-72) months. The 1-, 3- and 5-year tumor-free survival rates were 85.4, 40.9, and 29.2% for the SR group and 82.6, 27.7, and 16.4% for the RFA group (p=0.51). The mean tumor-free survival for the SR and RFA groups was 32.78 and 29.39 months (p=0.51), respectively. The cumulative survival rates were 100. 63.7, and 50.4% for the SR group and 100, 66.3 and 37.4% for the RFA group (p=0.67). The average survival time was 50.78 and 47.62 months (p=0.67) for the SR and RFA groups, respectively. We divided the tumors into a ≤ 3 cm diameter group and a 3-5 cm diameter group and found that the data for both groups were not statistically different. Cox multivariate analysis indicated that the number of tumors significantly affected overall survival (p=0.02) after the effects of various factors were excluded. The overall tumor-free survival and overall survival of the SR and RFA groups were not statistically different. CONCLUSIONS: RFA is safe and effective for the treatment of SHC, with a long-term efficacy similar to that achieved by SR. Therefore, RFA is a preferred treatment method for SHC.