[A clinical evaluation of distant metastases from a hepatocellular carcinoma with reference to location, frequency, symptoms, treatment & prognosis].

A clinical analysis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) associated with a distant metastases has been undertaken by the authors. Studied were eight patients (Group A) whose distant metastases were detected at the time of their initial examination, and 24 patients (Group B) whose distant metastases had been diagnosed during the course of treatment of their primary lesions. Complications arising from liver cirrhosis in Group A was less than in Group B. The location of the metastases were the bone in 16, the lung and the adrenal gland in four, the brain and the skin in two and the kidney in one. The mean survival times were 4.6 months (Group A), and 6.3 months (Group B). The cause of death was chiefly a progression of the primary lesion, except for one brain metastases. This analysis had shown that treatment of a bone metastasis is necessary for the relief of pain, and that care should be taken for the prevention of a fracture or paralysis, and that control of the primary lesion is necessary for improving the chances of survival.