Abstract: Objective To compare the efficacies of ultrasound-guided percutaneous laser ablation （LA） and radiofrequency ablation （RFA） for the treatment of patients with small hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the data of 54 patients with small HCC admitted to our department between 2010 and 2014. The patients with HCC were randomly divided into LA （n=27） and RFA group （n=27）. The response rates （RR）,local control （LC） rates and progression free survival （PFS） between the two groups were compared. Results The RR in LA group was 81.5%,not statistically significantly different compared with 77.8% （P>0.05） in the RFA group;The LC at the end of one year in RFA group was 77.8%,significantly higher than 51.9% in LA group （P<0.05）;The PFS in RFA group was （12.5±6.6） months,significantly longer than （8.7±5.1） months in LA group（P<0.05）;There was no significant difference as respect to the incidence of postoperative complications （P>0.05）. Conclusions RFA can improve LC,and prolong PFS in patients with small HCC,which warrants further clinical application.

Key words: Hepatoma, Laser ablation, Radiofrequency ablation, Progression free survival