A case of small liver cancer presenting as a huge mediastinal mass

Abstract

A 61-year-old male was admitted because of hemoptysis. He had a 9 year history of liver cirrhosis associated with HB viral chronic hepatitis. Physical examination revealed no abnormalities. Laboratory investigations revealed positive HBs antigen with normal alpha-fetoprotein. Chest X-ray film showed large mediastinal lymph nodes and an endobronchial polypoid mass in the distal end of the right main bronchus. The right main PA was narrowed due to compression by the mediastinal mass. Bronchoscopic examination revealed a polypoid mass in the right main bronchus. The biopsy specimen was histologically diagnosed as undifferentiated large cell carcinoma. The patient developed respiratory failure, and died 3 weeks after admission. Autopsy revealed a small liver cancer of 1.3 cm diameter within the cirrhotic liver, associated with a small abdominal lymph node metastasis and large mediastinal lymph node swellings. Thromboembolism in the bilateral main pulmonary arteries was concluded to be the cause of death. The mediastinal mass which directly invaded into the right main bronchus had a close histological similarity with the liver cancer, showing undifferentiated carcinoma cells with bizarre nuclei and abundant cytoplasm. An immunohistological study revealed cells positive for alpha-fetoprotein in the mediastinal lymph nodes. The patient was diagnosed as having small liver cancer with mediastinal lymph node metastases. A survey of the literature revealed only a few cases of advanced hepatoma associated with prominent mediastinal metastases. This is the first reported case of small liver cancer presenting with large mediastinal lymph node metastases.