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Application of the En Bloc Concept Combined with Anatomic Resection in Laparoscopic Hepatectomy
Published on: March 10, 2023
Hepatoblastoma in a 14 month-old female
A Boscarelli1, G B Levi Sandri1, A Calisti2
1Division of General Surgery and Liver Transplantation, San Camillo Hospital, Rome, Italy.
Insights
Hepatoblastoma, a common childhood liver cancer, is best treated with surgery. This case highlights successful surgical resection after preoperative chemotherapy for pediatric hepatoblastoma.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Oncology
- Surgical Oncology
- Pediatric Surgery
Background:
- Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common primary malignant liver tumor in children.
- Complete surgical resection offers the best prognosis for most hepatoblastoma cases.
- HB typically presents as an abdominal mass in children under three years old.
Abstract:
Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common malignant liver tumor in children. Complete surgical resection is the best treatment choice with a good prognosis in most cases. We present the case of a 14 month-old female patient was admitted to the pediatric surgery unit due to an abdominal mass localized in the right upper quadrant. The diagnosis retained was hepatoblastoma, so the patient underwent preoperative chemotherapy. The final size of the tumor permitted a complete surgical resection through a right subcostal incision enlarged to the left. Hepatoblastoma is the most common malignant liver tumor in children, more frequent in male than in female and typically presenting before 3 years of age as an abdominal mass found accidentally. Recent treatment strategies, consisting of chemotherapy combined with extensive surgery and in extreme cases liver transplantation, have improved the prognosis during the last years although HB's etiology and management are still subjects of debate.
