ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND/AIMS: The purpose of our study was to describe the characteristics of patients and recurrence patterns in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with radio-frequency ablation (RFA). Those were expected little different in some aspects from that in patients treated with surgical ablation (SA). METHODS: One hundred and twenty-five patients with HCC underwent RFA (Thermal Ablation, TA) between March 1, 1998 and May 31, 2001. Out of these, fifty-seven patients who were amenable to TA as a primary treatment, because of various reasons, were enrolled. Forty-eight patients were underwent SA due to HCC during the same period of time. RESULTS: The patients in the TA group exhibited more frequent ascites (p15 ng/ml) in the patients of TA was significantly higher than that of SA.