Spontaneous Regression Of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Gastroenterology 82(4): Apr 1982; 770-774
View Original Source →Abstract
Six cases of carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater treated by a radical two-stage operation with ligature of the pancreatic duct are recorded. The relative merits of the one-stage and the two-stage operation are discussed. One case of apparent spontaneous cure of an ampullary carcinoma is recorded.
Case Details
Personal Characteristics
A 65-year-old alcoholic black man, retired manual laborer in a spark plug factory
Clinical Characteristics
Developed jaundice, biopsy-proven multicentric hepatocellular carcinoma, scleral icterus, a large, rock-hard nontender liver, hepatosplenomegaly with multiple filling defects in both lobes, active cirrhosis
Remission Characteristics
Jaundice resolved, no evidence of tumor demonstrable by radionuclide scanning or laparoscopic liver biopsy, liver scan normal, alphafetoprotein negative
Treatment & Mechanisms
Proposed Remission Mechanisms
Abstention from alcohol
Non-Clinical Treatment
Abstention from alcohol, controlled abdominal pain with acetaminophen
Additional Notes
The patient is alive and well 48 months after the initial diagnosis. Regression of this tumor in the untreated adult has not previously been reported.