New tumor ablation techniques for cancer treatment (microwave, electroporation)

Since the introduction of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of liver tumors at the end of the 1990s, indications for local ablation techniques have been extended to other organs, in particular, the lungs, kidneys and bones. These techniques have also been improved, in particular to try and overcome the limitations of radiofrequency techniques, especially the significant decrease in complete ablation rates for tumors larger than 3 cm and tumors that are contiguous to vessels larger than 3 mm. Microwave ablation is a rapidly developing thermal ablation technique similar to RFA but with numerous differences. Electroporation, a non-thermal ablation technique with other possibilities, is in earlier stages of clinical development.