Spontaneous intratumoral hemorrhage into hepatocellular carcinoma during transcatheter arterial embolization: a case report

Spontaneous extrahepatic rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a rare but serious complication that occurs with an incidence of between 5 and 15% of patients with HCC. It is thought to be preceded by rapid expansion due to intratumoral bleeding. Extrahepatic rupture of HCC has been reported as a rare complication of transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE). Although there have been reports of extrahepatic rupture of HCC after TAE, but there is no report regarding intratumoral hemorrhage into HCC during TAE. We report a unique case of intratumoral hemorrhage into HCC during TAE presumably triggered by TAE. Although a rare complication, intratumoral hemorrhage into HCC after TAE should be considered in any patient with TAE due to HCC.