Comparative analysis of medical costs after hepatectomy versus radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma in real-world clinical practice.
Takeshi TerashimaYoichi HigashibeppuTatsuya YamashitaYukinori SakataMie AzumaHiroaki MunakataMika IshiiShuichi KanekoPublished in: Hepatology research : the official journal of the Japan Society of Hepatology (2022)
In this 3-year study, patients achieved similar survival rates irrespective of initial treatment, but the RFA group had a lower total medical cost burden than the hepatectomy group. If both treatments are equally feasible, RFA may be a preferable initial curative treatment for primary HCC. However, careful consideration and adequate treatment should be given due to its higher recurrence risk.