title: In Vivo Evaluation of Feeding Arteries of Tumors in Dorsal Sector of the Liver.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The identification of the dorsal sector of the liver and its detailed vascular anatomy is of primary importance for surgical practice and segmental transcatheter arterial chemoembolization.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to investigate the feeding arteries of tumors in dorsal sector of the liver.
  
  
  METHODS
  Computed tomography (CT) and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) images of eleven patients with tumors of the dorsal sector of the liver were analyzed retrospectively. The hepatic arteries that probably supplied the tumors were observed in DSA images. The case number of each hepatic artery feeding to the tumors was calculated. A scoring method was used to estimate each hepatic artery contribution to the tumor stain in DSA images. The accumulative scores were employed to evaluate the blood supply of feeding arteries of the tumors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The data of the study revealed that right posterior hepatic artery (RPHA) (n = 9), middle hepatic artery (MHA) (n = 8), left medial hepatic artery (LMHA) (n = 6), right anterior hepatic artery (RAHA) (n = 5), and caudate hepatic artery (CaHA) (n = 3) were the feeding arteries of the tumors in dorsal sector in eleven patients. The accumulative scores of RPHA, MHA, RAHA, and LMHA were 23, 17, 11, and 7 points, respectively (χ(2) = 6.827, P = 0.078, Friedman test). The total scores of right hepatic artery (RHA) branches and left hepatic artery (LHA) branches were 51 and 11 points, respectively (Z = -2.764, P = 0.006, Wilcoxon rank test).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The RPHA, MHA, RAHA, and LMHA might be the main feeding arteries of the tumors in dorsal sector of the liver.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Shixi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xi
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Bei
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing Medical University (NMU), Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Jinhai
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tang
keywords: Anatomy; Angiography; Hepatic artery; Liver Neoplasms