Lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma

Rational:Lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma (LEL-HCC) is a rare variant of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To date, few cases have been reported in the literature, and almost no report in analyzing the different features of LEL-HCC. Patient concerns: We describe a 37-year-old female patient with a 32 30mm mass in the right liver. Interventions: Complete surgical resection of the lesion was performed. Diagnoses:Histopathological examination of the resected tumor revealed undifferentiated HCC cells with significant lymphocytes infiltration. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were positive for AFP (alpha fetoprotein), hepatocyte, CK8, and glypican-3. The patient was diagnosed with LEL-HCC. Outcomes: The patient had a favorable clinical outcome, and was free from tumor recurrence after a 52-months follow-up. Lessons:Our case was the youngest patient of all the reported cases, and the third case who was infected with both hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV). LEL-HCC is a rare variant of HCC, with a relatively favorable prognosis. Further research recruiting more patients is required to determine the accurate causes and mechanism of LEL-HCC. Abbreviations: AFP = alpha fetoprotein, CT = computed tomography, EBV = Epstein-Barr virus, HBV = hepatitis B virus, HCC = hepatocellular carcinoma, HCV = hepatitis C virus, LELC = lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma, LEL-CC = lymphoepitheliomalike cholangiocarcinoma, LEL-HCC = lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma.