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BACKGROUND: Several international practice guidelines have recommended local ablation as the first-line treatment for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the synergetic anti-tumor impact of dendritic cell-cytokine killer (DC-CIK) combined with microwave ablation (MWA) for HCC. METHODS: This retrospective study included 1,141 patients from the American Joint Committee on Cancer stage I-II HCC, who were treated with therapeutic MWA. The immunotherapy group encompassing 40 patients received additional immunotherapy with DC-CIK, whereas the control group consisting of 1,101 patients was treated with MWA alone. Propensity score matching (PSM) with ratio of 1:3 was employed to balance selection bias. The oncological outcome and immune status were measured after combination therapy. RESULTS: The immunotherapy group patients exhibited significant longer disease-free survival (DFS, primary HCC: p = 0.036; recurrent HCC: p = 0.026). For patients with primary HCC, the recurrence frequency was reduced (p = 0.002), and recurrence interval (19 months vs. 9 months, p < 0.001) was prolonged in the immunotherapy group. Subgroup analysis revealed that patients ⩽ 60 years old, moderately-differentiated HCC, or co-infected with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) had a significant benefit over DFS in the immunotherapy group. After combination therapy, the serum CD3 + (p = 0.049), CD8/CD28 + (p = 0.045) were elevated. CONCLUSION: Combination therapy with DC-CIK and MWA can significantly reduce the recurrence and prolong DFS, especially for patients ⩽ 60 years old or with moderately-differentiated HCC or co-infected with HBV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The study aimed to compare the effectiveness and safety of ultrasound-guided microwave ablation (MWA) and percutaneous sclerotherapy (PS) for the treatment of large hepatic hemangioma (LHH). Methods: This retrospective study included 96 patients who underwent MWA (n = 54) and PS (n = 42) as first-line treatment for LHH in three tertiary hospitals from January 2016 to December 2021. Primary outcomes were technique efficacy rate (volume reduction rate [VRR] > 50% at 12 months), symptom relief rate at 12 months and local tumor progression (LTP). Secondary outcomes included procedure time, major complications, treatment sessions, cost and one-, two-, three-year VRR. Results: During a median follow-up of 36 months, the MWA group showed a higher technique efficacy rate (100% vs. 90.4%, p =.018) and symptom relief rate (100% vs. 80%, p =.123) than the PS group. The MWA group had fewer treatment sessions, higher one-, two- and three-year VRR, lower LTP rate (all p <.05), longer procedure time and higher treatment costs than the PS group (both p <.001). MWA shared a comparable major complications rate (1.8% vs. 2.4%, p =.432) with PS. After multivariate analysis, the lesion's heterogeneity and maximum diameter >8.1 cm were independent risk factors for LTP (all p <.05). In the PS group, lesions with a cumulative dose of bleomycin > 0.115 mg/cm3 had a lower risk of LTP (p =.006). Conclusions: Both MWA and PS treatments for large hepatic hemangioma are safe and effective, with MWA being superior in terms of efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To compare the efficacy of ultrasound-guided percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) without subsequent lumpectomy and breast-conserving surgery (BCS) in patients with early breast cancer (BC). This retrospective cohort study enrolled 106 patients with early BC (T0/1/2 N0/1 M0) treated by MWA (n = 21) or BCS (n = 85) from October 2014 to December 2020. Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed to balance the baseline characteristics between MWA and BCS groups. The tumor progression, overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), complications, and cosmetic results were compared. After PSM, there were 21 patients with balanced baseline characteristics in each group. After a median follow-up of 43 months (range, 15–89 months), there was no significant difference in tumor progression (10% vs 2%, p = 0.18), OS (96% vs 99%, p = 0.36), DSS (100% vs 99%, p > 0.99), and complications (0% vs 19%, p = 0.58). The operation time of MWA was shorter (60 min vs 101 min, p < 0.001) than that of BCS. For the management of metastatic lymph nodes, five (5/21, 24%) patients with six metastatic nodes underwent ablation in the MWA group and three patients (3/21, 14%) with six metastatic nodes underwent axillary lymph node dissection in the BCS group. All the patients in the MWA group reported excellent cosmetic results, but 29% of BCS patients expressed dissatisfaction with breast asymmetry (10%) and scar formation (19%) (p < 0.001). This pilot study indicated that in selected early BC patients, microwave ablation without subsequent lumpectomy had comparable tumor control effect with breast-conserving surgery and better cosmetic results at an intermediate follow-up. MWA without subsequent lumpectomy has a comparable interim survival effect and better cosmetic results as BCS in the treatment of selected early breast cancer. MWA has the potential to be a viable and promising therapeutic option for breast cancer patients reluctant or intolerant to surgery with the advantage of minimal invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Although microwave ablation (MWA) is a promising technique for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treatment, its 10-year efficacy is unknown. Objective: The objective of the study was to assess whether the advances in MWA for HCC translated into a real-world survival benefit. Methods: This retrospective study included 2,354 patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage 0 to B from 5 hospitals, with at least 2 years of follow-up for all the patients. Recurrence and survival were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method with time-period stratification. Results: A total of 5,326 HCCs (mean diameter, 2.9 cm ± 1.2) underwent 4,051 sessions of MWA with a median follow-up of 61.3 (0.6–169.5 range) months during 3 periods (2007–2010, 2011–2014, and 2015–2018). Technical success was achieved in 5,194 (97.5%) tumors with significant improvement over time, especially for >3.0-cm HCC (p < 0.001). Local tumor progression (LTP) showed no period-dependent advance, with >3.0-cm HCC and perivascular location being the risk factors for LTP. The median intrahepatic metastasis time was 27.6 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 25.2–28.8) months, with 5- and 10-year occurrence rates of 68.8% and 79.4%, respectively. The 5- and 10-year overall survivals were 63.9% and 41.1%, respectively, and BCLC stage 0, A, and all B patients showed an observable survival improvement over time (p < 0.001). The median disease-free survival time increased from 19.4 (95% CI: 16.5–22.6) months in 2007–2010 to 28.1 (95% CI: 25.9–32.3) months in 2015–2018. The improved survival for early recurrent (≤2 years) patients was period-dependent, as verified by Cox regression analyses. The major complications rate per procedure was 3.0% (122/4,051). Conclusions: These real-world data show that MWA provided an upward trend in survival for HCC patients with BCLC stage 0–B over a 12-year follow-up period. An encouraging clear survival benefit in early recurrent patients was also observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]