Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis
Abstract Purpose Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is frequently used to detect residual or recurrent liver cancer following radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, disagreements persist regarding its diagnostic efficacy. This study aimed to assess the di...
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Springer
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Discover Oncology |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-03008-x |
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| author | Ji Dong Xin Hu Lin Li Fei-Yan Jing Jin-Jin Chen Jun Chen |
| author_facet | Ji Dong Xin Hu Lin Li Fei-Yan Jing Jin-Jin Chen Jun Chen |
| author_sort | Ji Dong |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Purpose Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is frequently used to detect residual or recurrent liver cancer following radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, disagreements persist regarding its diagnostic efficacy. This study aimed to assess the diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) for detecting residual or recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after radiofrequency ablation (RFA) using a meta-analytic approach. Methods PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched for studies published up to March 2024. The diagnostic value of CEUS was assessed using sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC). Results This meta-analysis included 13 studies with 802 HCC patients (964 lesions). CEUS demonstrated high sensitivity (0.88, 95% CI: 0.80–0.93) and specificity (0.98, 95% CI: 0.96–0.99) for detecting residual or recurrent tumors after RFA. The positive likelihood ratio (PLR) was 46.88 (95% CI: 20.69–106.24) and the negative likelihood ratio (NLR) was 0.12 (95% CI: 0.07–0.21). The diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) was 222.77 (95% CI: 100.23–495.16), with an AUC of 0.96 (95% CI: 0.94–0.97). Factors such as publication year, study design, ethnicity, blinding, patient age, contrast agent usage, and reference tests were found to influence CEUS’s diagnostic accuracy. Conclusion CEUS exhibited excellent diagnostic performance for detecting residual or recurrent tumors in HCC patients after RFA. Therefore, it should be employed in clinical practice for evaluating therapeutic response to RFA. Registration Number INPLASY202440089. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-adc9f0a7690a4d508dc30bbbdc9af7b5 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2730-6011 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Springer |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Discover Oncology |
| spelling | doaj-art-adc9f0a7690a4d508dc30bbbdc9af7b52025-08-20T03:45:35ZengSpringerDiscover Oncology2730-60112025-07-0116111710.1007/s12672-025-03008-xDiagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysisJi Dong0Xin Hu1Lin Li2Fei-Yan Jing3Jin-Jin Chen4Jun Chen5Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Affiliated Wuxi Fifth Hospital of Jiangnan University (The Fifth People’s Hospital of Wuxi)Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Affiliated Wuxi Fifth Hospital of Jiangnan University (The Fifth People’s Hospital of Wuxi)Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Affiliated Wuxi Fifth Hospital of Jiangnan University (The Fifth People’s Hospital of Wuxi)Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Affiliated Wuxi Fifth Hospital of Jiangnan University (The Fifth People’s Hospital of Wuxi)Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Affiliated Wuxi Fifth Hospital of Jiangnan University (The Fifth People’s Hospital of Wuxi)Department of Ultrasound Medicine, The Affiliated Wuxi People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical UniversityAbstract Purpose Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is frequently used to detect residual or recurrent liver cancer following radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, disagreements persist regarding its diagnostic efficacy. This study aimed to assess the diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) for detecting residual or recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after radiofrequency ablation (RFA) using a meta-analytic approach. Methods PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched for studies published up to March 2024. The diagnostic value of CEUS was assessed using sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC). Results This meta-analysis included 13 studies with 802 HCC patients (964 lesions). CEUS demonstrated high sensitivity (0.88, 95% CI: 0.80–0.93) and specificity (0.98, 95% CI: 0.96–0.99) for detecting residual or recurrent tumors after RFA. The positive likelihood ratio (PLR) was 46.88 (95% CI: 20.69–106.24) and the negative likelihood ratio (NLR) was 0.12 (95% CI: 0.07–0.21). The diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) was 222.77 (95% CI: 100.23–495.16), with an AUC of 0.96 (95% CI: 0.94–0.97). Factors such as publication year, study design, ethnicity, blinding, patient age, contrast agent usage, and reference tests were found to influence CEUS’s diagnostic accuracy. Conclusion CEUS exhibited excellent diagnostic performance for detecting residual or recurrent tumors in HCC patients after RFA. Therefore, it should be employed in clinical practice for evaluating therapeutic response to RFA. Registration Number INPLASY202440089.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-03008-xContrast-enhanced ultrasonographyRadiofrequency ablationHepatocellular carcinomaLikelihood ratioMeta-analysis |
| spellingShingle | Ji Dong Xin Hu Lin Li Fei-Yan Jing Jin-Jin Chen Jun Chen Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis Discover Oncology Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography Radiofrequency ablation Hepatocellular carcinoma Likelihood ratio Meta-analysis |
| title | Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis |
| title_full | Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis |
| title_fullStr | Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis |
| title_short | Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis |
| title_sort | diagnostic performance of contrast enhanced ultrasonography for predicting therapeutic response to radiofrequency ablation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma a meta analysis |
| topic | Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography Radiofrequency ablation Hepatocellular carcinoma Likelihood ratio Meta-analysis |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s12672-025-03008-x |
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