Gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of primary leiomyoma of the liver

A Unique Case of the Transformation of a Hepatic Leiomyoma into Leiomyosarcoma with Pancreatic Metastases: Review of the Literature with Case Presentation

Primary hepatic leiomyoma (PHL) is a rare entity, with very few cases reported in the literature. Even more rarely, until now practically undescribed, is the transformation of a hepatic leiomyoma into leiomyosarcoma with pancreatic metastases. Here, we report a single case of the progression of PHL in primary hepatic leiomyosarcoma, with clinical–surgical and histopathological features, and we conducted a review of the literature of related cases that can be found.

Primary Hepatic Leiomyoma in a Healthy Middle-Aged Woman: Literature Review and Case Report

Introduction: Primary hepatic leiomyoma (PHL) is a rare benign hepatic tumor with unclear pathogenesis. It more commonly occurs in immunosuppressed patients, while only 24 cases have been described among immunocompetent individuals. To date, only one successful preoperative diagnosis of PHL has been achieved. Case Presentation: Here we report a case of PHL in a middle-aged woman with no history of immunosuppression. Preoperative diagnosis of PHL was established using ultrasound-guided fine needle trucut biopsy (FNTB). Nevertheless, due to the growing nature of tumor and patient's symptoms, we proceeded with surgical resection, which confirmed the diagnosis of PHL. At 6-month follow up, the patient is in good condition with no evidence of tumor recurrence. Conclusions: PHL is an uncommon tumor that should be considered in the differential diagnosis of rare liver tumors. Image guided FNTB appears to be effective in achieving preoperative diagnosis of PHL. Surgical resection, however, remains both diagnostic and curative in the management of PHL.

Primary leiomyoma of the liver in an immunocompetent patient

Primary leiomyoma of the liver (PLL) is a rare benign tumor occurring in immunosuppressed people. From 1926 less than fifty cases are reported in the scientific literature and about half are in immunocompetent patients. Etiology of this kind of lesion is not yet well known. We report a case of primary hepatic leiomyoma in a 60-year-old immunocompetent woman. The patient presented with lipothymia with unexpected vomiting. She underwent an ultrasound (US), and a computed tomography (CT) scan that revealed the presence of a single, solid lesion about 9 cm located between the S5 and S8 segment of the liver. It showed a well-defined, heterogeneous hypodensity with internal and peripheral enhancement and various central hypoattenuating areas and no wash-out in the portal and the late phases. Because of her symptoms and the risk of malignancy, the patient underwent a surgical liver resection. Histological diagnosis was primary leiomyoma of the liver. The patient had an uneventful recovery and was discharged after 7 days. At 30 months follow-up there were no symptoms and no evidence of disease. Leiomyoma of the liver is a rare benign neoplasm of which clinical symptoms are nonspecific and the exact radiological diagnosis still remains a challenge for radiologists. Etiology is still unclear and usually PLL represents an incidental diagnosis. Surgery plays a primary role not only in the treatment algorithm, but also in the diagnostic workout.

Primary hepatic leiomyoma in a Chinese female patient without underlying disease: a case report

Background

Primary hepatic leiomyoma (PHL) is a rare manifestation of tumors in the liver; it is mainly characterized by its origin in the mesenchymal tissue. To date, the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of this disease remain unclear, however most reported PHL patients suffer from acquired immunity deficiency syndrome (AIDS) or take immunosuppressive medications after organ transplantation.

Case presentation

In this case report we describe a rare case of PHL in a middle-aged Chinese woman who was asymptomatic with no history of hepatitis or other liver disease. She had no history of immune suppression medication therapy. In view of the benign features of the hepatic lesion, along with our implementation of the respecting the patience choices, a laparoscopic partial hepatectomy of the right lower liver was performed, which appeared to be highly effective and give a good prognosis.

Conclusions

Clinical characteristics of the patient should be compared to previously reported aspects of this disease to reach a clear diagnosis. Moreover, although PHL is extremely rare, it should still be considered a possibility. Surgical intervention is effective in treating this disease.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12893-019-0598-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Imaging features of rare mesenychmal liver tumours: beyond haemangiomas

Tumours arising from mesenchymal tissue components such as vascular, fibrous and adipose tissue can manifest in the liver. Although histopathology is often necessary for definitive diagnosis, many of these lesions exhibit characteristic imaging features. The radiologist plays an important role in suggesting the diagnosis, which can direct appropriate immunohistochemical staining at histology. The aim of this review is to present clinical and imaging findings of a spectrum of mesenchymal liver tumours such as haemangioma, epithelioid haemangioendothelioma, lipoma, PEComa, angiosarcoma, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour, solitary fibrous tumour, leiomyoma, leiomyosarcoma, Kaposi sarcoma, mesenchymal hamartoma, undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma and hepatic metastases. Knowledge of the characteristic features of these tumours will aid in guiding the radiologic diagnosis and appropriate patient management.

Primary hepatic leiomyoma: unusual cause of an intrahepatic mass

Leiomyomas are benign lesions arising from the smooth muscle layer. They are most commonly detected either within the gastrointestinal or genitourinary tracts. Primary hepatic leiomyoma (PHL) is a rare pathology. It is an isolated pathology within the liver, without evidence of any other coexisting leiomyomas. Very few cases have been described in literature. PHL may occur in healthy individuals although an association with immunodeficiency and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection has been observed. Majority of the reported cases have been in females. A 20-year-old female patient presented with abdominal symptoms. MRI confirmed an 8 cm mass, with very low signal intensity on T2 images and peripheral rim enhancement on gadolinium. A laparoscopic left lateral sectorectomy was performed. Final histopathology confirmed the presence of benign lesion with spindle cell and smooth muscle proliferation and a fibro-vascular stroma compatible with a leiomyoma. There was no evidence of any leiomyomatous lesion elsewhere in the body. A rare diagnosis of PHL was therefore established. Acknowledging the rare incidence of this lesion, we report the same and review the relevant literature. PHL is usually a retrospective diagnosis, confirmed on histo-pathology assessment of the resected specimen. Liver resection is required in these patients due to the presence of symptoms, in the presence of a solid mass lesion within the liver. Surgery is thus definitive, diagnostic cum therapeutic.

Primary leiomyoma of the liver: a review of a rare tumour

Context. Primary leiomyoma of the liver is a rare tumour with uncertain pathogenesis with similar presentation with other tumours of the liver. Little is known about its clinical course. Objectives. To review the literature for case reports of primary leiomyoma of the liver. Methods. Extensive literature search was carried out for case reports of primary leiomyoma of the liver. Results. A total of 36 cases of primary leiomyoma of the liver were reviewed. The mean age of presentation is 43 years with slight female sex affectation; females accounted for 55.6% of the cases reported in the literature. The average size of the tumour is 8.7 cm. 34.4% of the cases reviewed were incidental finding with the mean follow-up time of 33 months with most cases reporting no evidence of disease. Conclusions. Primary leiomyoma of the liver is very rare tumour with complex pathogenesis which remains largely unknown. Imaging of the tumour does not allow for a tissue specific diagnosis; hence histological review of the tissue specimen and immunohistochemical stains are imperative for diagnosis. Surgical resection is both diagnostic and curative. The diagnosis of primary leiomyoma of the liver should be considered as a differential in the management of liver tumours.

Primary hepatic leiomyoma: case report

The patient is a previously healthy 28-year-old woman with incidentally detected focal liver lesion. On CT, the tumor showed brisk arterial enhancement and persistent hyperenhancement on portal and delayed phases. Histological study showed spindle cells without atypia and immunohistochemical study was consistent with leiomyoma.

Solid hypervascular liver lesions: accurate identification of true benign lesions on enhanced dynamic and hepatobiliary phase magnetic resonance imaging after gadobenate dimeglumine administration

PURPOSE

To evaluate hepatobiliary phase magnetic resonance imaging with gadobenate dimeglumine for differentiation of benign hypervascular liver lesions from malignant or high-risk lesions.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

Retrospective assessment was performed of 550 patients with 910 hypervascular lesions (302 focal nodular hyperplasia [FNH], 82 nodular regenerative hyperplasia [NRH], 59 hepatic adenoma or liver adenomatosis [HA/LA], 329 hepatocellular carcinomas [HCC], 12 fibrolamellar-HCC [FL-HCC], 21 peripheral cholangiocarcinomas [PCC], 105 metastases). Imaging was performed before and during the arterial, portal-venous, equilibrium, and hepatobiliary phases after gadobenate dimeglumine administration (0.05 mmol/kg). Histologic confirmation was available for ≥1 lesion per patient, except for patients with suspected FNH (diagnosis based on characteristic enhancement/follow-up). Lesion differentiation (benign/malignant) on the basis of contrast washout and lesion enhancement (hypo-/iso-/hyperintensity) was assessed (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, PPV, and NPV) relative to histology or final diagnosis.

RESULTS

On portal-venous or equilibrium phase images, washout was not seen for 208 of 526 (39.5%) malignant (HCC, FL-HCC, PCC, metastases) and high-risk (HA/LA) lesions. Conversely, only 5 of 384 (1.3%) true benign lesions (FNH/NRH) showed washout. Taking washout as indicating malignancy, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for malignant lesion identification during these phases was 61.8%, 98.7%, and 77.4%. On hepatobiliary phase images, 289 of 302 FNH, 82 of 82 NRH, 1 of 59 HA or LA, 62 of 341 HCC or FL-HCC, and 2 of 105 metastases were hyperintense or isointense. Taking iso- or hyperintensity as an indication for lesion benignity, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, PPV, and NPV for benign lesion identification was 96.6%, 87.6%, 91.4%, 85.1%, and 97.3%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Hepatobiliary phase imaging with gadobenate dimeglumine is accurate for distinguishing benign lesions from malignant or high-risk lesions. Biopsy should be considered for hypointense lesions on hepatobiliary phase images after gadobenate dimeglumine.