[Primary liver cancer. Its epidemiological, clinical and biochemical characteristics]

Epidemiological, clinical, biochemical and topographic features of primary hepatic cancer (PHC) were reviewed retrospective and prospectively in this study. This review consisted of 76 patients from 1971 to 1990. Forty nine males and 27 females. The mean age was 66.1 +/- 11.7 years. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HC) was the most frequent histological type (84.1%), followed by cholangiocarcinoma (87.7%). Mixed carcinoma and hepatoblastoma were 4.3 and 2.9% respectively. The prevalence af PHC among 1485 autopsies was 0.74%. The most frequent sites af metastasis were the lungs (66%) and portal vein (50%). Hepatocellular carcinoma was associated to cirrhosis in 80% of the cases. A syndrome including asthenia, weight loss, hepatomegaly and cholestasis was identified in most of the patients, and alkaline phosphatase was the most frequently disturbed laboratory test. 60% of tumors were bilateral and none of the solitary tumors had less than 5 cms in diameter. 20% of HC showed normal serum levels of AFP (< 20 ng/ml). 40% had at least one of the markers of B virus hepatitis in serum.