Skip to content

No-touch RFA Versus Traditional RFA for Small Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Prospective Randomized Comparative Study on No-touch Radiofrequency Ablation Treatment of Small Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Status
UNKNOWN
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT02830737
Enrollment
178
Registered
2016-07-13
Start date
2016-01-31
Completion date
2020-12-31
Last updated
2017-09-15

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Keywords

Small Hepatocellular Carcinoma, No-touch RFA, Traditional RFA, Recurrence rate

Brief summary

Traditional RFA treatment has been a curable therapy for small hepatocellular carcinoma (diameter≤3cm). This technique ablates the tumor via radio frequency by inserting an electrode needle directly into the tumor. This clearly violates no-touch technique based on the principle of surgical oncology. Thus the 1-year recurrence rate of the cancer is up to 30% after the treatment, and the 3-year tumor-free survival rate is only 20% - 40%. No-touch RFA treatment avoids the direct contact with the tumor that can cause the spread of cancer cells in the liver, or the Antrim spread, Therefore it has been suggested that no-touch RFA treatment reduce the recurrence rate after operation in comparison with the traditional RFA treatment. This research project aims at using the prospective randomized comparative method to compare the short-term and the long-term curative effects between no-touch RFA and traditional RFA treatments for small hepatic carcinoma.

Interventions

PROCEDURETraditional RFA

Radio frequency ablation via an ultrasound-guided electrode needle penetrating into the lesion center

PROCEDURENo-touch RFA

Radio frequency ablation via an ultrasound-guided electrode needle penetrating into the tumor-free zone (within 5mm along the edge of the tumor)

Sponsors

Southwest Hospital, China
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

1. Primary hepatocellular carcinoma, according to the postoperative pathological examination as the standard, or the diagnostic criteria with reference to the 2012 American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases if the pathological evidence is not available; 2. A single tumor with a diameter ≤3cm; 3. The tumor that has not invaded the portal vein, the hepatic vein, or the secondary branch; 4. Liver function classified as Child A or B; 5. Liver reserve function test with ICG-R15 (indocyanine green retention at 15min) ≤30%, and the important organs that can function with the tolerance of RFA or partial hepatectomy; 6. No significant coagulopathy: platelet count \> 50,000,000,000 /L, prolonged prothrombin time \< 5 seconds; 7. Age 18 - 70 years old; 8. No acceptance of other anti-cancer therapy before the treatment.

Exclusion criteria

1. Complication of severe portal hypertension: a history of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, a history of severe hypersplenism, or refractory ascites; 2. Patients with extrahepatic metastasis or lymph node metastasis; 3. Patients with multiple liver tumors found from imaging exam or during the treatment; 4. Patients with pathological examinations showing the other tissue type of liver cancer after the treatment; 5. Patients who expect to receive a liver transplant; 6. Patients whose preoperative imaging exam indicates the tumor close to the gallbladder, hilar major blood vessels, bile ducts and surrounding vital organs, with a potential of serious injury by mistake or serious complications during the treatment.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frame
Recurrence Rate3 years

Secondary

MeasureTime frame
Recurrence-free Survival Rate3 years
Overall Survival Rate3 years

Other

MeasureTime frame
Number of Participants with Adverse Events3 years

Countries

China

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026