Small hepatocellular carcinoma: an Italian experience.
Recent reports have demonstrated the possibility of using ultrasound to detect hepatocellular carcinomas under 3 cm (small HCC). Our aim was to assess the incidence of small HCC in an Italian ultrasonographic series. Among 17,133 scans of unselected patients, we detected 85 HCC, 9 of which were under 3 cm. All patients had cirrhosis and 6 were HBsAg positive. An echo-guided biopsy was performed in all cases, and the diagnosis was always correct. We conclude that echographic follow-up is warranted in Italy for cases at risk for HCC such as HBsAg+ cirrhotics and patients with chronic aggressive HBsAg+ hepatitis older than 35, in agreement with the reports of Far Eastern authors.
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000473:pathology*; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology; D008104:Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic / Q000473:pathology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography