The global status and trends of local ablation for lung malignancies: a bibliometric and visualization analysis.

Abstract

Background: Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related mortality globally. In recent years, the advent of image-guided percutaneous ablation techniques has led to a gradual increase in the application of local ablation therapy (LAT) for both primary and secondary lung malignancies. Despite this progress, a systematic summary of the research trends and current clinical applications in this field is still lacking. Bibliometric analysis, a powerful statistical and visualization tool, can provide valuable insights into the evolving landscape of this therapeutic modality. This study aimed to examine the utilization of LAT for both primary and metastatic lung cancers, while exploring current research focuses and potential future directions in this field.

Methods: By leveraging the Web of Science (WOS) core collection database, this study employed VOSviewer and bibliometrix tools to analyze current research trends and future development directions of LAT for both primary and metastatic lung cancers.

Results: The study findings revealed a steady increase in annual publication volume between 2008 and 2023. Research output was predominantly contributed by China, the United States, and Japan. Among institutions, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center led in publication count, with Shandong University and Okayama University following closely. The Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology emerged as the most prominent journal in this research domain. Through keyword analysis, five major research clusters were identified: (I) therapeutic technologies for lung cancer; (II) ablation methodologies for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); (III) interventional approaches and strategies for lung cancer; (IV) ablation techniques for metastatic lung tumors; and (V) innovative technologies in lung cancer treatment.

Conclusions: Local ablation combined with other treatments are expected to improve therapeutic effects and become future trend in the treatment of lung malignancies.