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To evaluate the long-term outcomes of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) as a first-line therapy for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and determine the prognostic factors for survival.

The institutional review board approved this retrospective study. From January 2006 to December 2007, 162 consecutive patients with cirrhosis (Child-Pugh class A and B, 137 and 25 patients, respectively) who underwent RFA as a first-line treatment for up to three HCCs with a maximum diameter of 5 cm (182 HCCs; mean diameter ± standard deviation, 2.59 cm ± 0.79; 17 multinodular forms) were included. After a mean follow-up of 50.3 months ± 19.9, results were analyzed for tumor recurrence, as well as overall and recurrence-free survival time. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression model were used to evaluate the prognostic factors.

The cumulative …