Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31183208›Full record

ArticleJournal of gastrointestinal oncology2019

Percutaneous radiofrequency versus microwave ablation for management of hepatocellular carcinoma: a randomized controlled trial.

Ahmed Kamal, Amr Aly Abd Elmoety, Yousri Abdel Meguid Rostom, Mohamed Said Shater, Sameh Aldesoky Lashen

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Article in Journal of gastrointestinal oncology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
44citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

44 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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  11. Robotic navigation-assisted percutaneous liver puncture: a pilot study.Quantitative imaging in medicine and surgery · 2025
    Article
  12. Microwave ablationJHEP reports : innovation in hepatology · 2025
    Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Tissue Ablation: Applications and Perspectives.Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) · 2024
    Review
  16. Article
  17. Article
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  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Ahmed KamalHepatology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Amr Aly Abd ElmoetyHepatology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Yousri Abdel Meguid RostomHepatology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Mohamed Said ShaterHepatology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
Sameh Aldesoky LashenHepatology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common cancer in the world and the third most common cause of cancer related deaths. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA) are effective measures for HCC management. Although MWA is usually considered to be superior to RFA in the medical community, clinical studies showed contradictory results. We aimed to compare the efficacy of both techniques using a randomized controlled trial.

methodsWe had assessed all patients with definite HCC who were referred to our unit during the period from mid-June 2017 to mid-December 2017 for inclusion in the study. After fulfilling the criteria, patients were randomized to either RFA or MWA. Achieving complete ablation was ensured. Patients were followed up every 3 months after the procedure to detect any tumor recurrence.

resultsThere were no statistically significant differences between both techniques regarding complications, local tumor recurrence, development of

conclusionsRFA and MWA are comparable techniques for HCC treatment. Our group couldn't prove any superiority of MWA over RFA except for the shorter time needed for ablation.

Indexed as

hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)microwave ablation (MWA)Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)

Identifiers

PMID31183208
PMCPMC6534711

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.