Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound for Early Assessment of Microwave Ablation in HCC (SBS-CEUS)

May 13, 2026 updated by: Dezhi Zhang, The First Hospital of Jilin University

A Diagnostic Pilot Study of Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound for Early Assessment of Microwave Ablation Efficacy in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the sixth most common malignancy and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide [1]. Although surgical resection remains the reference curative therapy, ultrasound-guided microwave ablation (MWA) yields comparable oncologic outcomes [2,3] and is endorsed as a first-line option in several national and international guidelines. A sufficient ablative ablation margins (AM) is pivotal for preventing local tumour progression (LTP) [4,5].

According to current consensus, technical success is judged one month after ablation using contrast-enhanced CT (CE-CT) or MRI (CE-MRI) together with long-term follow-up [6,7]. Yet, inflammatory changes within the ablation zone peak during the first few days, delaying reliable evaluation, increasing patient anxiety, and often necessitating multiple imaging sessions.In recent years, various fusion imaging methods have been used to assess AM after ablation in HCC patients, including CT-CT image fusion [8, 9], MR-MR image fusion [10, 11], and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)-CT/MR image fusion [12, 13]. However, fusion imaging techniques require high-quality preoperative images, and post-operative liver displacement and deformation due to tumour removal can make image registration difficult.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is widely used in clinical practice due to its economic simplicity, lack of radiation, and ability to display lesion areas in real time [14-16]. Recently, fusion imaging based on 3D CEUS has been reported to show good accuracy in AM evaluation [17-19], but the assessment of AM for multiple ablations of multiple tumours remains uncertain.Therefore, the potential of CEUS for early assessment of AM should be further developed. Simultaneous-screen comparison contrast-enhanced ultrasound (SBS-CEUS) refers to the simultaneous comparison of arterial phase images before and after tumour ablation under the same settings of the ultrasound diagnostic instrument.Studies have shown [20] that SBS-CEUS has significant value in displaying liver lesions in difficult-to-visualise areas, but to date, no studies have systematically compared SBS-CEUS with CEUS in the assessment of AM.

This retrospective study therefore compared the diagnostic accuracy of SBS-CEUS versus CEUS for early (1-3 days) assessment of the AM after MWA in patients with HCC.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

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Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

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Study Type

Study Type

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Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
106

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • China
    • Jilin
      • Changchun, Jilin, China, 130021
        • GE

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

a) HCC diagnosed according to EASL guidelines and confirmed by pathology and/or typical imaging features on CE-CT, CE-MRI, or CEUS;b) ≤3 lesions, each ≤5 cm, without vascular/bile-duct invasion or distant metastasis;c) CE-MRI performed at our centre ≤1 month before and ≤1 month after ablation (CE-CT for MRI-contraindicated patients) to serve as the reference standard;d)Baseline CEUS ≤7 days before MWA and follow-up CEUS 1-3 days after MWA .

Exclusion Criteria:

a) Severe comorbid disease;b) Missing mandatory imaging;c) Any condition judged by the investigators to preclude reliable data acquisition.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Screening
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound for Early Assessment of Microwave Ablation Efficacy in HCC
Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound is performed 1-3 days after MWA surgery.
Procedure: Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound

Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound is performed 1-3 days after MWA surgery, with contrast-enhanced MRI or CT one month after microwave ablation as the reference standard.

Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound is performed within 7 days before MWA surgery and 1-3 days after surgery, with contrast-enhanced MRI or CT one month after microwave ablation as the reference standard.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Side-by-Side Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound and Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound were used to evaluate the efficacy of microwave ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma. Based on the minimum distance between the tumour margin and the ablation zone, early postope
Time Frame: Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was performed within 7 days prior to microwave ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma, and side-by-side contrast-enhanced ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound were performed simultaneously within 1-3 days after t
Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was performed within 7 days prior to microwave ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma, and side-by-side contrast-enhanced ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound were performed simultaneously within 1-3 days after t

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The First Hospital of Jilin University

Study record dates

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Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 1, 2021

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 31, 2022

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 30, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 13, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 13, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 20, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 13, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2023-KS-233

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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Conditions

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Dietary Supplements

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