Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumor: a Possible Complication of Percutaneous Radiofrequency Ablation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

An inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is an uncommon, benign lesion characterized by the mesenchymal proliferation and infiltration of inflammatory cells composed primarily of lymphocytes and plasma cells. A percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is an effective and safe therapeutic modality used for the management of liver malignancies. Here we report, for the first time, a case of IMT as a complication of RFA for hepatocellular carcinoma in a 61-year-old man with a Child's class A hepatitis B-related liver cirrhosis. Gastrohepatic fistula formation was pathologically proven and associated with the RFA. Such a longstanding inflammation of the fistula might have been a possible cause of the development of IMT in this case.