ABSTRACT
Objective: This study aimed to apply digital subtraction angiography [DSA] for the detection of early hepatocellular carcinoma [HCC] in an alpha-fetoprotein [AFP]-positive, ultrasonography and/or multi slice computed tomography [MSCT]-negative suspicious population
Design: Cross-sectional study
Setting: The Second People's Hospital of Jingzhou, Hubei Province, China
Subjects: Sixty-eight cases with continuously and significantly increasing SFP, and no definite or suspected HCC lesions on ultrasonography and/or MSCT examination
Interventions: All cases underwent DSA; some patients with negative results of DSA were injected approximately 3 - 5 ml lipiodol in the hepatic artery and their CT were reviewed after one month
Main outcome measures: DSA manifested hepatic artery early to middle period supplying tumor vascular thickening, tortuous or wild disorder, with clearly stained nodules on the edge; the patients were injected lipiodol to find lipiodol deposition
Results: We detected 58 lesions in 51 cases that were diagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma via DSA and seven lesions in the other 17 cases via lipiodol to confirm the diagnosis. Ten cases of hepatocellular carcinoma were excluded
Conclusion: Detection of early hepatocellular carcinoma with DSA has clinical significance in the high-risk groups with significantly and continuously increasing AFP, ultrasonography and and/or MSCT-negative or suspicious population