Metastatic Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Presentation in a Rare Site

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignancy showing extra-hepatic metastases in 30-50% of the patients at the time of diagnosis. However, Patients presenting with metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma are rare and soft tissue metastases in head and neck area are extremely rare.

 

We report a 54-year-old man presenting with hoarseness of voice and a neck lump. Radiological impression was of a laryngeal carcinoma with local infiltration. Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) revealed a neoplastic lesion, with the incisional biopsy confirming a metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma. A primary HCC was discovered subsequently. Although cytological features are those of HCC, this case highlights the diagnostic dilemma due to its rare metastatic location.