Open AccessInfantile mesenchymal hamartoma of the liver with elevated alpha fetoprotein
Author(s) -
Liem Thanh Le,
Hai Thanh Phan,
Trung Sao Nguyen,
Khai Dinh Truong,
Đăng Thành Nguyen,
Toan Bao Nguyen,
Thuy Thi Thu Pham
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
bjr case reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2055-7159
DOI - 10.1259/bjrcr.20200196
Subject(s) - hepatoblastoma , medicine , pathology , hamartoma , ultrasound , radiology
Mesenchymal hamartoma of the liver (MHL) is a benign tumour that most commonly occurs in children. In most cases of MHL, the α fetoprotein (AFP) level is within the normal limits, only in a few cases, increased AFP has been described which usually causes misdiagnosis of hepatoblastoma. We report a case of a 3-month-old paediatric patient who was incidentally detected with a very high level of AFP, at 6388.4 ng ml −1 . Ultrasound revealed a right liver tumour, segment VI, measuring at 56 × 53 mm. According to images of ultrasound and MRI, the diagnosis was mesenchymal hepatic sarcoma. The paediatric patient had surgery to remove the entire liver segment containing the tumour. Micropathological examination showed that the tumour was a MHL. The serum AFP level fell rapidly to near normal following the surgery. The MHL benign liver tumour with an atypical presentation caused a very high AFP level. This was a rare clinical case, and it was difficult to diagnose.