Ablation Options For Treatment of HCC - MWA and RFA

_____________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common malignancy in the world. Although it occurs predominantly in Asia and Africa, its incidence is rising in western countries where hepatitis C infection is common. Thermal destruction has been used effectively for many years for ablation of both small liver metastases and primary lesions (HCC). RFA and MWA are similar in many ways. Both of them use heat to treat and kill tumor tissues. RFA has been used in clinical operations in the USA for years while MWA is still undergoing major improvements and is actively researched. Clinical trials for microwave liver ablation have been carried out in Asian countries. The prime goal of ablation technology is to kill the liver tumor while preserving the healthy liver tissue effectively. A study of microwave ablation and radiofrequency ablation, are summarized in this paper. The authors has been studying these techniques since long and concluded that further studies are necessary to evaluate its future role as local therapy for liver tumors as number of challenges must be overcome before ablation techniques can be considered a standard treatment for cancer. These include the development of new devices, techniques and the standardization of treatment protocols.