Radiofrequency ablation (RF ablation) is a minimally invasive treatment for cancer that is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Mayo Clinic physicians have used radiofrequency ablation to treat hundreds of patients for liver and kidney tumors and bone cancer pain. The RF ablation team at Mayo Clinic includes radiologists, who perform the treatment, and oncologists, who determine whether RF ablation tumor treatment is appropriate for a patient.
The image-guided technique kills cancer cells by heating and destroying them. Learn how it works.
The treatment is an alternative when surgery is not likely to be successful or has failed — or when other medical conditions increase the risk of surgery. Read Frequently Asked Questions.
Decades after beating bone cancer at Mayo Clinic, John Fulton returned, this time to defeat islet cell cancer. John says that, once more, Mayo helped him "beat the system."
Read John's story.
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