1986 Volume 47 Issue 11 Pages 1509-1513
Undifferentiated sarcoma of the liver is very rare and has a poor prognosis. An adult case of such a sarcoma is reported herein.
The patient, a 30-year-old woman, complained of right hypochondrial pain and fever and was diagnosed as having a tumor in the right hepatic lobe by abdominal ultrasonography, CT and angiography. Rupture of the tumor at the hepatic area occurred during her hospitalization, necessitating emergency surgery. Surgical findings revealed coagulative masses, necrosis and gelatin-like substances in the ruptured hepatic tumor and in the abdominal cavity. Excision of the tumor was judged to be impossible and after hemostasis, a catheter for sustained intraarterial injection was inserted into the hepatic artery and retained there. Intraarterial injection of MMC, 5-FU, ADM and CPA during and after surgery was ineffective and the patient died on day 61 after surgery. Histodiagnosis on autopsy revealed that the hepatic tumor was undifferentiated sarcoma with the primary focus in the liver.
To date, only nine cases, one adult and eight childhood, have been reported in Japan; our case is the second adult case reported in this country.
