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Hepatocarcinogenesis: imaging-pathologic correlation

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Abstract

Rapid advances in liver surgery, including liver transplantation, radiology, and pathology, have created a need for clinically relevant nomenclature for premalignant and early lesions of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Precancerous lesions include dysplastic foci and dysplastic nodules (DNs) characterized by cytologic or structural atypia. Although imaging diagnosis is playing a crucial role in the evaluation of hepatocarcinogenesis and early diagnosis of HCC, it is still challenging to accurately characterize borderline nodules such as small arterially enhancing lesions or hypovascular nodules. This article discusses pathological and radiological features of these small nodular lesions and offers insights into the multistep process of hepatocarcinogenesis by describing the progression of pathologic change linking DNs to HCC.

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Acknowlegment

This study was supported by National Research Foundation grant funded by the Korea government (MEST) (No. R13-2002-054-03004-0) (to YN Park).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, Brain Korea 21 Project and Institute of Gastroenterology, Center for Chronic Metabolic Disease, and Yonsei University Health System, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Young Nyun Park

  2. Department of Radiology, Brain Korea 21 Project and Institute of Gastroenterology and Yonsei University Health System, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Myeong-Jin Kim

  3. Department of Radiology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 120-752, Republic of Korea

    Myeong-Jin Kim

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  1. Young Nyun Park
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Correspondence to Myeong-Jin Kim.

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Park, Y.N., Kim, MJ. Hepatocarcinogenesis: imaging-pathologic correlation. Abdom Imaging 36, 232–243 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-011-9688-y

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