Liver tumours may be considered as:
- cystic lesions
- benign tumours
- malignant tumours:
- primary malignant tumours
- metastatic malignant tumours
Liver tumours may be classified as benign, malignant and secondary.
Benign tumours:
- cystic - polycystic liver disease; often associated with polycystic kidneys
- adenoma - associated with oral contraceptive pill
- cavernous haemangioma - the most common benign hepatic tumour
Malignant tumours:
- hepatoblastoma - tumour of infancy
- haemangiosarcoma
- hepatocellular carcinoma - accounts for 90% of primary liver cancers
- hepatocholangiocarcinoma - malignancy of both liver cells and bile duct epithelium
Secondary tumours:
- metastases are the most common hepatic malignancy
- the most common primaries are lung, breast, colon and pancreas
Reference:
- 1) Beckingham, IJ, Krige, JEJ (2001). Liver tumours. BMJ, 322,477-80.