Case Report
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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 28, 2013; 19(44): 8146-8150
Published online Nov 28, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i44.8146
Small cell carcinoma of the liver and biliary tract without jaundice
Jae-Min Jo, Yoo-Kyung Cho, Chang-Lim Hyun, Kyoung-Hee Han, Ji-Young Rhee, Jung-Mi Kwon, Woo-Kun Kim, Sang-Hoon Han
Jae-Min Jo, Ji-Young Rhee, Jung-Mi Kwon, Woo-Kun Kim, Sang-Hoon Han, Yoo-kyung Cho, Department of Internal Medicine, Jeju National University Hospital, Jeju-si 890-716, Jeju Self-Governing Province, South Korea
Chang-Lim Hyun, Department of Pathology, Jeju National University Hospital, Jeju-si 890-716, Jeju Self-Governing Province, South Korea
Kyoung-Hee Han, Jeju National University School of Medicine, Jeju-si 890-716, Jeju Self-Governing Province, South Korea
Author contributions: Jo JM, Cho YK, Rhee JY, Han KH, Kwon JM, Kim WK and Han SH contributed to the designing, drafting, editing and approval of the final version of this manuscript; Hyun CL supported pathologic data.
Correspondence to: Sang-Hoon Han, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, Jeju National University Hospital, 1753-3 Ara-1dong, Jeju-si 890-716, Jeju Self-Governing Province, South Korea. btfulo@gmail.com
Telephone: +82-64-7548121 Fax: +82-64-7171131
Received: August 13, 2013
Revised: September 23, 2013
Accepted: September 29, 2013
Published online: November 28, 2013
Processing time: 120 Days and 0.2 Hours
Abstract

An 80-year-old woman presenting with chest pain was found to have a large, lobulated soft tissue mass in the liver and nearby tissues on abdominal computed tomography (CT). The tumor had invaded the common hepatic artery and main portal vein. Jaundice developed 4 wk later, at which point, a pancreas and biliary CT scan revealed a large mass in the right lobe of the liver and a hilar duct obstruction, which was found to be a small cell carcinoma. Despite its rarity, liver and bile duct small cell carcinoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of atypical chest pain without jaundice.

Keywords: Extrapulmonary small cell carcinoma; Jaundice; Liver mass; Bile duct mass; Neuroendocrine tumor

Core tip: We report a rare case of small cell carcinoma of the liver and biliary tract. Despite its rarity, liver and bile duct small cell carcinoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of atypical chest pain because this symptom might indicate the presence of abdominal malignancy. We also explain why previous studies have reported inconsistent immunohistochemical findings in tissues obtained from extrapulmonary small cell carcinomas.