Giant cavernous hepatic hemangiomas in adults: enucleation under selective blood inflow control

Among hepatic hemangiomas (the most common solid hepatic tumor in adults), "giant hemangiomas" are those defined by a diameter greater than 4 cm. The natural history of such lesions is unclear, and many surgical procedures have been described. In five women and one man (mean age 49), we successfully used enucleation of the tumor under blood inflow control. This technique was made possible by a cleavage plane between the hepatic parenchyma and the hemangioma. This straightforward and safe procedure required a low rate of transfusion (mean 200 mL/patient) and spared a maximum amount of hepatic tissue.