Hepatocellular carcinoma that arose from primary Sjögren's syndrome

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) typically originates from HBV or HCV associated liver cirrhosis. Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a kind of autoimmune disease. A sixty-two year old female patient with mild liver damage was diagnosed with pSS after excluding viral, alcoholic and drug-induced hepatitis according to serum immunological detection and liver biopsy. But when she was hospitalized for a second time two years later, a CT scan revealed liver neoplasm. Surgery confirmed HCC and liver cirrhosis by pathology. The elevated level of AFP recovered to normal after tumorectomy. In conclusion, HCC might be a candidate outcome in patients with pSS; it is the doctors' responsibility to keep this kind of patient under surveillance.