Liver biopsy for hepatoblastoma: a single institution’s experience

Abstract

Background/purpose Hepatoblastoma diagnoses require liver biopsies. We aimed to investigate factors affecting the success of liver biopsy for hepatoblastoma diagnoses. Methods Data from patients with hepatoblastoma, including their demographic and clinical data, biopsy procedure information, pathologic diagnoses and subclassification, and surgical complications, were retrospectively reviewed. Results Of 153 patients who underwent liver biopsy, 28, 93, and 31 underwent computed tomography-guided, digital subtraction angiography-guided, and ultrasound-guided percutaneous biopsies, respectively, and one underwent a laparoscopic liver biopsy. One patient developed postoperative bleeding requiring a blood transfusion. The median number of specimens collected was 3. One-hundred and forty-four (94.1%) patients’ HB diagnoses were confirmed through biopsies, and 96 (62.7%) patients’ HB diagnoses were subclassified. Seven surgeons and eight interventional radiologists performed the biopsies. The diagnostic success rate did not correlate with the biopsy technique or the specialist who performed the biopsy. Significantly more specimens were biopsied from the patients whose diagnoses were subclassified (3.34 ± 1.08) than from those whose diagnoses were not subclassified (2.81 ± 0.79). Surgeons tended to collect more specimens than the interventional radiologists. Conclusion Percutaneous liver biopsy is safe and effective for diagnosing hepatoblastoma, and its complication rate is very low. Collecting >3 pieces of tissue is preferred. Level of evidence III.