Resumen

Patients with thalassemia are often exposed to several risk factors for developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) due to their repeated transfusions. However, even transfusion-independent patients with thalassemia intermedia (TI) can develop HCC, which is mainly attributed to a state of iron overload. We report here two cases and review the literature for the association between TI and HCC. Along with our cases, a total of 36 cases of HCC in thalassemic patients were reported in the literature. Of these, 22 (61%) were TI patients with 6 (27%) of them being hepatitis B and C negative. There was no consistency in their characteristics; therefore, we recommended screening thresholds for HCC in TI patients based on their total liver iron concentration (LIC).

Palabras clave: Thalassemia intermedia hepatocellular carcinoma liver iron concentration iron overload risk factor.

2013-07-09   |   331 visitas   |   Evalua este artículo 0 valoraciones

Vol. 12 Núm.1. Enero-Febrero 2013 Pags. 142-146 Ann Hepatol 2013; 12(1)