Liver tumor

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Large liver tumor in the left lobe of a 50-year-old man, operated on in Saudi Arabia

Liver tumors are tumors that lie in or on the liver . Different types of tumors can develop in the liver because the liver is made up of different cell types. Liver tumors can be benign or malignant. They can be discovered through medical imaging such as sonography or CT , often as an incidental finding . They can also be noticeable due to their size ( hepatomegaly ), abdominal pain or jaundice and other liver malfunctions .

classification

Liver tumors are primarily divided into benign and malignant tumors.

Benign

There are several benign liver tumors:

Hemangiomas : These are the most common benign liver tumors. They are found in up to 7% of autopsies. They start from blood vessels, usually remain symptom-free and do not require treatment. Sometimes bleeding occurs, then it needs to be removed. Infantile hemangioendothelioma is a rare tumor.

Liver adenomas , also liver cell adenomas (LZA): These rare, benign, epithelioid liver tumors develop in the liver and are also rare. They are mostly found in women who use estrogens as contraceptives or who abuse steroids. In most cases they are solitary in the right lobe of the liver. Their size varies between one and 30 cm. Your symptoms are all due to large lesions that can lead to severe abdominal pain. There has been an increase in these adenomas in recent decades. Not much is known about the prognosis of these tumors, but there are suspicions about possible malignancies. Spontaneous bleeding or rupture requires surgical intervention, i. d. A partial liver resection is usually performed.

Focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH): second most common benign tumor of the liver. It is found somewhat more frequently in women than in men, often as an incidental finding during operations. The tumor has no tendency to bleed; an indication for an operation is usually only made in the event of mechanical problems such as pressure from gall or blood vessels. The cause is unclear, changes in the intrahepatic arteriovenous system are being discussed.

Nodular regenerative hyperplasia (NRH): A diffuse or focal nodular change in the liver with the portal field architecture preserved . The cause is not exactly known, long-term use of steroids , diabetes mellitus , or chronic inflammation such as hepatitis are suspected as triggers .

Bile duct adenomas: These are cystadenomas that arise from the cubic epithelium of the bile ducts. They consist of numerous mucus-filled, epithelial-lined cysts. There is a tendency towards malignant degeneration.

Malignant

These tumors are commonly known as liver cancer .

In most cases, liver carcinomas are metastases from other tumors, most often from the gastrointestinal tract , colorectal carcinoma in particular , sometimes carcinoids mainly from the appendix , but also breast carcinomas , ovarian carcinomas , lung carcinomas , Kidney carcinoma , prostate carcinoma , and others.

The most common primary liver carcinoma (developed in the liver itself) is hepatocellular carcinoma , or HCC for short. It makes up about 90% of primary liver tumors.

Less common primary tumors are bile duct carcinoma , cystadenocarcinoma, tumors of the mesenchymal tissue such as angiosarcoma , and hepatoblastoma , a rare malignant tumor in children.

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