Will the hepatic hemangioma grow back after it has been removed?

Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
Updated on September 13, 2024
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It is possible for liver hemangiomas to recur after they have been removed.

Therefore, for the treatment of liver hemangiomas, minimally invasive surgery, namely interventional treatment, is mainly chosen in clinical practice, which can achieve better treatment effects. Patients with liver hemangiomas often have a benign tumor, generally without obvious discomfort, but there is a possibility of rupturing and bleeding, or even causing hemorrhagic shock. Therefore, for larger liver hemangiomas, surgical treatment should be administered as soon as possible. Interventional surgery can achieve very good treatment results, but there is still a possibility of recurrence after surgery, so regular follow-up with color Doppler ultrasound is necessary to dynamically observe changes in the condition.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Why is it not recommended to perform surgery on hepatic hemangiomas?

Patients with hepatic hemangioma generally do not exhibit obvious symptoms, and most cases are discovered during color Doppler ultrasound examinations. Hence, surgical treatment is not required at this time. It is possible to regularly re-examine the color Doppler ultrasound dynamics and monitor any changes in volume. However, for large hepatic hemangiomas, complications such as rupture, bleeding, and even life-threatening hemorrhagic shock may occur, leading to death. Therefore, early surgical treatment is advised for such cases. The primary method is minimally invasive surgery achieved through interventional procedures. Post-surgery, regular follow-up with color Doppler ultrasound is also necessary to dynamically observe any changes in the condition.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Do liver hemangiomas need to be treated?

Whether treatment is needed for liver hemangiomas mainly depends on the size and volume of the hemangioma and whether there are any symptoms. For patients with liver hemangiomas, those with relatively large volumes may experience liver bleeding or even affect liver function. In such cases, surgical treatment should be performed. The surgery can be done through interventional procedures to achieve ligation, which can cure the condition. Of course, for patients with smaller liver hemangiomas, there are generally no obvious symptoms, and most are only discovered during ultrasound examinations. There is no need to be overly worried or to undertake special treatments in such cases. Regular ultrasound check-ups to dynamically observe any changes in volume are sufficient. However, if the condition worsens, early treatment should be administered to improve the prognosis for the patient.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Will liver hemangioma increase cancer embryonic antigen?

Generally speaking, hepatocellular adenomas do not exhibit elevated levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). Regarding hepatocellular adenomas, they are benign liver lesions and typically do not cause any noticeable symptoms in patients. They are most often discovered during ultrasound examinations. Patients with larger hepatocellular adenomas may experience pain in the liver area, and there is also a possibility of rupture and bleeding. Therefore, early surgical intervention is advisable, as surgery can yield excellent treatment outcomes. However, generally, patients with hepatocellular adenomas do not exhibit an increase in CEA. Elevated tumor markers and increased CEA are found in patients with malignant liver tumors.

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Written by Shen Jiang Chao
Radiology
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Difference between liver hemangioma and liver cancer in ultrasound

Liver hemangiomas display a variety of appearances on ultrasound, including hyper-echoic, hypo-echoic, and mixed echoes. Typically, hemangiomas appear on ultrasound as round or oval hyper-echoic masses, with internal echoes that may show a sieve-like change. In contrast, liver cancer primarily appears as hypo-echoic on ultrasound, and liver cancer symptoms are more varied because most liver cancers develop on the basis of cirrhosis. In addition to hypo-echoic masses, there are other manifestations, such as an incomplete liver capsule, widened liver fissures, spleen enlargement, and dilated portal veins, which are used to differentiate from hemangiomas.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Is a liver hemangioma serious if it is benign?

The severity of a patient with a hepatic hemangioma primarily depends on the size of the tumor. For patients with hepatic hemangiomas, if the size is relatively small, they generally do not experience significant discomfort, and most are discovered incidentally during ultrasound screenings. In such cases, no special treatment is required; just regular follow-up ultrasounds to monitor any changes in size. However, if the hepatic hemangioma is large, it often leads to rupture, bleeding, or even hemorrhagic shock, which requires attention and should be treated as early as possible. For its treatment, minimally invasive surgery, specifically interventional treatments, are the preferred options and can be very effective.