Primary hepatic neuroendocrine carcinoma diagnosed by needle biopsy: a case report

Background Primary hepatic neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs) are extremely rare. The rate of recurrence after resection is extremely high, and the prognosis is poor. It is debatable whether chemotherapy or surgical resection is the optimal initial treatment for primary hepatic NECs. Therefore, selecting an appropriate therapeutic approach for patients with primary hepatic NECs remains clinically challenging. We present a case of primary hepatic NEC in a patient who developed recurrence after undergoing surgical resection. Case presentation A 78-year-old man with bone metastases of prostate cancer was referred to our department because of a solitary 66-mm tumor in the left lateral segment of the liver, which was detected on annual follow-up by computed tomography after prostate resection. A biopsy and preoperative diagnostic workup identified the lesion as a primary hepatic neuroendocrine carcinoma; therefore, left lateral segmentectomy was performed. Immunohistochemically, the tumor was positive for chromogranin A, synaptophysin, and CD 56, and the Ki-67 index was 40%. This neuroendocrine carcinoma was classified as a large cell type. Adjuvant chemotherapy with carboplatin + etoposide was initially administered a month after surgery. However, lymph node recurrence occurred 4 months after surgery, and the patient died of systemic metastases 15 months after surgical resection. Conclusions Due to the lack of availability of abundant quantities of relevant, high-quality data, there is no standard therapy for primary hepatic NECs. Selecting the most appropriate treatment for patients depending on several factors, such as the stage and differentiation of a tumor and a patient’s performance status and clinical course, is consequently preferred. More cases need to be studied to establish the best treatment strategy for primary hepatic NEC.

Treatment outcome of hepatolithiasis: Nepalese experience

Background: Hepatolithiasis is a rare disease with high rate of treatment failure and recurrence. This study aims to review the burden, management and outcome from an endemic region.Methods: A retrospective review of database of patients with hepatolithiasis managed surgically from 2015 to 2019 was performed. Diagnosis was based on the clinical findings and radiological investigations. Demographic data, clinical presentation, extent of disease and type of surgical management were evaluated. The outcome measures included immediate stone clearance, postoperative complications and follow-up.Results: Hepatolithiasis was seen in nine (0.34%) out of 2,600 patients being evaluated for gallstone disease. Three patients were young, while the remaining six were in the middle-age group. The presenting symptoms were pain abdomen (78%) and jaundice (22%). Hepatolithiasis was located in the left, right and both ductal systems in 5, 1 and 3 patients respectively. Liver resection for unilateral disease was done in 3 patients: left hepatectomy (n=2) and left lateral segmentectomy (n=1). High bile duct exploration and bilio-enteric drainage was done in 5 patients. One patient required hepatolithotomy and T-tube drainage due to cholangitis. Complete stone clearance was achieved in 78%. Complications included surgical site infection and cholangitis in 2 patients. There was no operative mortality. Histopathology revealed recurrent pyogenic cholangitis. At median follow-up of 28 months, 7 patients are symptom-free.Conclusions: Hepatectomy is an effective treatment when disease is confined to the left lobe. Combined surgical procedure is an acceptable option for bilateral or right-sided hepatolithiasis.

Metastasis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma to the Esophagus: Case Report and Review

A follow-up endoscopy in a 71-year-old Japanese man who had undergone a left lateral segmentectomy for HCC two years ago revealed an approximately 2 cm in diameter pedunculated polypoid mass in the middle part of the thoracic esophagus. Immunohistochemical staining of the endoscopic biopsy revealed a metastatic HCC esophageal tumor. As the patient’s disease could be radically removed by preoperative examinations, we resected the metastatic esophageal tumor via right thoracotomy and esophagogastrostomy reconstruction. Histological examination of the resected specimen revealed that the esophageal tumor was compatible with a HCC metastasis. This is an extremely rare case of a solitary metastasis to the esophagus from HCC in the literature.

Laparoscopic Hepatectomy: Current State in Japan Based on the 4th Nationwide Questionnaire

Purpose. Since laparoscopic hepatectomy (LH) became covered by national health insurance in April 2010 in Japan, the numbers of applied cases and institutions performing it have increased and the indication has expanded. We surveyed the current state and safety of LH in Japan. Methods. A questionnaire survey was performed in 41 institutions related to the Japanese Endoscopic Liver Surgery Study Group and 747 institutions certified by the Japanese Society of Gastroenterological Surgery, and responses concerning all 2962 cases of LH performed by August 2011 were obtained. Results. The surgical procedure employed was hemihepatectomy in 234 (8%), segmentectomy in 88 (3%), left lateral segmentectomy in 434 (15%), segmentectomy in 156 (5%), and partial resection in 1504 (51%) cases. The approach was pure laparoscopy in 1835 (63%), hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery in 201 (7%), and laparoscopy-assisted surgery in 926 (31%). Regarding perioperative complications, surgery was switched to laparotomy in 59 (2.0%), reoperation was performed in 4 (0.1%), and surgery-related death occurred in 2 (0.07%). Intraoperative accidents occurred in 68 (2.3%), and postoperative complications developed in 94 (3.2%). Conclusions. When the selection of cases is appropriate, LH for liver diseases can be safely performed.