Prognostic Factors after Percutaneous Radiofrequency Ablation in the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Impact of Incomplete Ablation on Recurrence and Overall Survival Rates.

AIMS: To report on the long-term impact of tumor and non-tumor related parameters on local recurrence, distant recurrence and survival in patients with naïve or recurrent type hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated by radiofrequency ablation (RFA).

METHODS: We performed 240 RFA sessions on 133 patients with 156 HCC nodules developed on a background of liver cirrhosis and analyzed the outcomes.

RESULTS: Contrast-enhanced ultrasound performed one month after RFA showed complete ablation in 119 out of 133 (89.65%) patients. With a median follow-up of 46 months, 3-, 5- and 7-year survival rates were 61.7%, 35.7%, and 22.6%, respectively. Previous ethanol injection and histological grade were significantly related to local tumor progression. Child-Pugh class, incomplete ablation, histological grade, previous ethanol injection, alpha-fetoprotein level before the treatment, and local recurrence were all significantly related to distant recurrence. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that age, Child-Pugh class, distant recurrence and multiple incomplete ablations were significantly related to survival.

CONCLUSION: Radiofrequency ablation could be locally curative for HCC, resulting in a survival longer than 7 years. Previous ethanol injection and incomplete ablations were strongly associated with poor outcomes.