A case of primary hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma mimicking metastatic carcinoma

Epithelioid hemangioendothelioma is a rare vascular origin tumor which usually occurs in soft tissues, liver, and lung. It usually affects adult women and presents as multiple hepatic nodules with mainly peripheral distribution. It is difficult to diagnose and treat because of non-specific clinical manifestations and findings on the imaging study. Moreover, pathological misdiagnosis is common. We report a case of this rare tumor that was detected incidentally. Final diagnosis was based on histological evidence. A 52-years old man suffered from right upper quadrant abdominal pain for 3 months, and was initially misdiagnosed as a metastatic carcinoma. Physical examination revealed superior cervical lymphadenopathy with mild hepatomegaly. Finally, hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma was diagnosed on the basis of positive immunohistochemical staining for factor VIII, CD34, and VEGF. Our case highlights the importance of a histological diagnosis to avoid misdiagnosis. (Korean J Gastroenterol 2007;50:61-65)