Lipoma of the liver: computed tomographic, ultrasonographic, and cytologic findings

A hepatic lesion, manifest for several years in a 59-year-old female patient, was diagnosed as lipoma in the pre-contrast scan because of its attenuation value (-87 Hounsfield units (HU)); in addition, diagnosis was confirmed by aspiration cytology. In this case report the great merit of transmission computed tomography (TCT) is demonstrated, and ultrasound patterns and possible histogenetic origin of this neoplasm are discussed. The lipomatous liver tumors described in the literature with attenuation values of less than -60 HU are merely mixed tumors with lipomatous amounts of various sizes, whereas in true lipomas attenuation values from -80 to -120 HU have been measured.