title: Solitary necrotic nodule of the liver: a very challenging diagnosis!
abstract: Solitary necrotic nodule of the liver is a rare entity of unknown aetiology. We describe the case of a 59-year-old woman reporting sporadic right upper quadrant pain. An abdominal CT scan revealed a liver nodule located in segment 4. The complementary investigation was unable to identify the neoplastic lesion, and its surgical resection was performed, with an uneventful recovery. Pathological examination revealed a 'solitary necrotic nodule of the liver.' The patient remains asymptomatic and free of recurrence 3 years after surgery. This case corroborates that despite the advances in liver imaging and biopsy, liver nodules are sometimes a diagnostic challenge; quite often, only its surgical resection allows a definitive diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Surgery A Department, Coimbra University Hospital Centre, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ricardo Jorge
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Teixeira Martins
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guilherme Tralhão
authors.forename: Maria A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Cipriano
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Castro Sousa
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D061705:Image-Guided Biopsy; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology*; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis; D008875:Middle Aged; D009336:Necrosis; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D014056:Tomography, X-Ray