Hepatocellular carcinoma with spontaneous regression: report of the rare case

Spontaneous regression of a malignant tumor, including hepatocellular carcinoma, is extremely rare. A 78-year-old female with hepatitis B presented with a hepatocellular carcinoma, 3 cm in size, in the lateral segment. During her work-up before surgery, over the period of a month, the tumor started to show spontaneous regression from the radiological and biochemical studies. A lateral segmentectomy of the liver was performed, and the pathologic study showed complete necrosis of the tumor with vigorous inflammatory cellular infiltration. The patient is now doing well without any evidence of recurrence. We herein report a case with hepatocellular carcinoma showing spontaneous regression, and review the associated literature.