Hepatocellular carcinoma with sarcomatous change.
BACKGROUND
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with sarcomatous change is an uncommon neoplasm with a poor prognosis.


OBJECTIVE
To report a new case.


METHODS
A 72-year-old man presented with abdominal right upper quadrant pain. The diagnosis of cirrhosis was suspected on clinical and biochemical data. On abdominal computed tomography, the mass was not enhanced in the arterial phase and exhibited peripheral enhancement during portal phase which persisted in the delayed phase. The serum alpha-fetoprotein was 500 ng/ml but since the imaging features were not typical of ordinary HCC, percutaneous liver biopsy was performed and confirmed the diagnosis of HCC with sarcomatous change.


CONCLUSIONS
Except for liver biopsy, no diagnostic method could distinguish between sarcomatous and ordinary HCC.
Department of Gastroenterology and hepatology, Charles Nicolle Hospital, Tunis, Tunisia.
Yosra
Y
Said
Senda
S
Trabelsi
Nadia
N
Kourda
Radhouane
R
Debbeche
Slim
S
Bouzaidi
Mohammed
M
Salem
Taoufik
T
Najjar
D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D012509:Sarcoma / Q000473:pathology*