HEPATIC TUMOR AND TUMOR-LIKE LESIONS IN CHILDHOOD

Tumors of the liver are rare in infancy and childhood. Some are peculi ar to the pediatric age, e.g., hepatoblastoma, infantile hemangioendot helioma, mesenchymal hamartoma, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma. This revie w is based upon personal experience with a series of 32 cases. On the basis of the histological features it is proposed that focal modular h yperplasia (FNH) and mesenchymal hamartoma be considered as tumor-like lesions rather than true neoplasms. A few benign epithelial lesions ( FNH, adenoma) were associated with inborn error of metabolism. In half of the patients, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) developed in perinata lly hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected children. HCC developed in a nonc irrhotic liver in a single patient, in whom HBV-DNA integration had oc curred.