[Surgical Resection of Hepatic Portal Lymph Node Metastasis after Repeated Treatment for Hepatocellular Carcinoma...

We encountered a case of hepatic portal lymph node metastasis after repeated treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)recurrence. A 73-year-old male patient underwent partial gastrectomy following rupture of a gastrointestinal stromal tumor 8 years ago. A 70mm tumor was simultaneously revealed in the posterior segment of the liver, and imatinib treatment was initiated based on the diagnosis of a metastatic liver tumor. Due to the absence of an increasing tendency in the tumor, extended posterior segmentectomy was performed, and the pathological diagnosis was moderately differentiated HCC. During observation, transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE)plus radiofrequency ablation(RFA)therapy was performed twice, and partial resection of the liver was performed once again for HCC recurrence. Recently, PIVKA-Ⅱ showed a high value of 1,720mAU/mL, and follow-up computed tomography showed HCC recurrence in S4/8 and hepatic portal lymph node metastasis. TACE was administered for recurrent lesions in S4/8, and surgical resection of the hepatic portal lymph node was performed together. The pathological diagnosis revealed extensive liver tissue necrosis and moderately-topoorly differentiated HCC in the excised lymph nodes. Lymph node metastasis of HCC is rare, and in this case, a change in lymph flow caused by repeated treatment for HCC recurrence was considered a factor influencing the course.