Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 5, 2026

Isolation of Neonatal Extrahepatic Cholangiocytes
Published on: June 5, 2014
Glypican-3 Staining in Non-Neoplastic Liver in 2 Pediatric Cases: A Potential Diagnostic Pitfall
Qian Wang1,2, Catherine K Gestrich1,2
1Department of Pathology, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Abstract:
Expression of glypican-3 is seen in a variety of malignant liver neoplasms, such as hepatoblastoma and hepatocellular carcinoma. It is generally not expressed in benign neoplasms and is therefore used as a reliable immunohistochemical marker for distinguishing benign from malignant liver neoplasms. Its expression can also be seen normally in the liver during embryonic development. It has not been described in non-neoplastic liver outside of embryonic development. We present 2 cases of glypican-3 positivity in the background non-neoplastic liver parenchyma of 2 pediatric patients with liver masses.

