title: Radiofrequency ablation of primary and metastatic liver tumors: a critical review of the literature.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Surgical resection is the treatment of choice for hepatic tumors; however, for various reasons, the vast majority of patients are not operative candidates. As a result, several local ablative therapies have emerged as alternatives to resection or as adjuncts in total oncologic care. Presently, the most widely employed liver-directed treatment is radiofrequency thermal ablation.
  
  
  METHODS
  To define the current status of radiofrequency ablation (RFA), the authors reviewed available safety and efficacy data from select studies on RFA. A MEDLINE search was performed using the keywords "tumor type" + "radiofrequency ablation" + "survival." Only those studies containing long-term survival data on greater than 50 patients were included in this analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although RFA has been readily adopted into treatment paradigms, more rigorous trials are needed to solidify its place in the armamentarium of therapeutic strategies for hepatic malignancy.
authors: Department of Surgery, Hepatobiliary and Oncologic Surgery, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors: Sean
authors: S
authors: Garrean
authors: Justin
authors: J
authors: Hering
authors: Abdul
authors: A
authors: Saied
authors: W Scott
authors: WS
authors: Helton
authors: N Joseph
authors: NJ
authors: Espat
mesh_terms: D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000009:adverse effects; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D007564:Japan; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States