Do intraoperative ultrasound and tissue elastography measurements predict the size of hepatic microwave ablations?
Ultrasound and elastography provide an accurate gross estimation of ablation zone size but are unable to predict the degree of cellular injury and significantly underestimate the ultimate size of the ablation.
Our study demonstrates significantly higher serum levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in patients with MC+HCV and MC+AT compared to healthy controls. Furthermore, the study first shows a significant increase in circulating IL-6 observed in MC+AT patients with respect to MC+HCV. Future studies in larger patients' series will be needed to evaluate the relevance of serum IL-6 and TNF-α determination as clinico-prognostic markers of MC+HCV patients and its usefulness in the therapeutic approach to these patients.