Hepatocellular carcinoma in a cirrhotic liver becoming detectable within a month

A case of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in a cirrhotic liver which became detectable within a month is reported here. The patient was admitted for treatment of oesophageal varices due to Child's C grade liver cirrhosis. A hepatic angiogram was performed before the treatment and showed no neovasculature. After undergoing variceal treatment by injection sclerotherapy, the patient underwent another angiogram 28 days later in order to measure the efficacy of the treatment. The second angiogram revealed the emergence of small multiple neovasculatures throughout the entire liver. From the angiographic findings, those tumours were considered to be HCC. The present report suggests that small HCC latent in a cirrhotic liver can thus acquire neovasculature within a short period of time.