Solitary fibrous tumour of the liver: case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Solitary fibrous tumours (SFTs) of the liver are very rare entities. Although firstly described to be tumours of pleural origin, SFTs have been reported in various organs such as the meninges, orbit, upper respiratory tract, thyroid, peritoneum, retroperitoneum and soft tissues. Histologically, this tumour often shows alternating cellular and relatively acellular areas. The cellular areas show a wide variety of patterns, making it difficult for it to be differentiated from other mesenchymal tumours. Its immunohistochemical positivity for CD34 and vimentin is believed to be unique. Histiogenesis of SFTs, however, is not yet fully understood. They are known to be usually benign, with only few reports indicating their ability to metastasize.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: We review the literature on SFTs of the liver and report on the case of a 63-year-old female patient with a large SFT of the right liver.

CONCLUSIONS: Surgical resection seems to be the treatment of choice. Local recurrence is scarce. Due to the very limited number of cases, data regarding the long-term survival of patients are lacking.