Chennai’s Kauvery Hospital successfully treated a 25-year-old woman with a rare liver tumour. The team performed a successful living donor liver transplant and she was discharged after a short hospital stay and good recovery. Hepatic Epitheloid HemangioEndothelioma [HEHE], is a rare tumour that occurs in the soft tissues or blood vessels in the lung, liver or bone. Such tumours require timely diagnosis and treatment.
Elaborating on this tumour which was found in the patient, Dr K Elankumaran, Head of Liver Diseases Transplantation & Hepatobiliary Surgery said, "The 25-year-old patient from Coimbatore, presented with symptoms of upper abdominal pain and significant loss of weight. Upon abdominal scan and investigations, we found the presence of an unusual kind of liver cancer (HEHE). We recommended a liver transplantation to be done, in order to replace the cancerous organ with a healthier one."
The patient's uncle came forward to donate a portion of his liver. "After assessing both the patient and donor, we went ahead with the transplantation procedure. We transplanted the right lobe of the liver from the donor to the patient. She had a quick and uncomplicated recovery and was discharged from the hospital in a week," he added.
HEHE is rare, and is often poorly diagnosed due to its heterogeneous nature. "The cancer can arise in any soft tissues surrounding the organs of lung, liver or bones and can metastasise to other parts. Its prevalence is one in one lakh population, and requires accurate and timely diagnosis. A well-equipped team of hepatologists, transplant surgeons and anaesthetists, is required for the successful management of such a patient," said Dr Elankumaran.
The symptoms of HEHE in liver generally are abdominal pain and unusual weight loss but some could be asymptomatic. "The cancer, which occurs more often among young adults, is mostly undiagnosed early as it could be asymptomatic. The doctors or patient usually come across this condition only upon examination during an MRI scan /CT scan for some other purpose. The cause of occurrence is still unknown and is not hereditary," added Dr Elankumaran.
Speaking about the successful treatment, Dr Aravindan Selvaraj, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Kauvery Hospital said, "Cancers occur over a very wide spectrum –which refers to a range of manifestations and severities of illness associated with the disease. There have been many rare types researched and diagnosed over the years. I congratulate Dr K Elankumaran and team for consistently and successfully treating such patients.”