The Role of Ultrasound in Cancer and Cancer-Related Pain-A Bibliometric Analysis and Future Perspectives

Ultrasound has a deep penetrating ability with minimal or no tissue injury, while cancer-mediated complications during diagnosis, therapy, and surgery have become a serious challenge for clinicians and lead to the severity of the primary condition (cancer). The current study highlights the importance of ultrasound imaging and focused ultrasound therapy during cancer diagnosis, pain reduction, guidance for surgical resection of cancer, and the effectiveness of chemotherapy. We performed the bibliometric analysis on research domains involving ultrasound, cancer management, pain, and other challenges (chemotherapy, surgical guidance, and postoperative care), to observe the trend by which the research field has grown over the years and propose a possible future trend. The data was obtained from the Web of Science, processed, and exported as plain text files for analysis in the Bibliometrix R web interface using the Biblioshiny package. A total of 3248 documents were identified from 1100 journal sources. A total of 390 articles were published in 2022, with almost a 100% growth rate from previous years. Based on the various network analysis, we conclude that the outcome of the constant research in this domain will result in better patient care during the management of various diseases, including cancer and other co-morbidities.

Automated summary

Ultrasound imaging and focused ultrasound therapy play crucial roles in cancer diagnosis, pain reduction, surgical resection guidance, and chemotherapy effectiveness. This study conducted a bibliometric analysis to examine the growth trend and future prospects in the research field encompassing ultrasound, cancer management, pain, and related challenges. Using data from the Web of Science, a total of 3248 documents from 1100 journal sources were analyzed, with 390 articles published in 2022, demonstrating an almost 100% growth rate compared to previous years. Network analysis suggests that continuous research in this domain will significantly improve patient care for various diseases, including cancer and its co-morbidities.