Diagnosis of Hepatic Nodules in Patients at Risk for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: LI-RADS Probability Versus Certainty

Unequivocal diagnosis with avoidance of false-positive results is very relevant in patients with liver disease in whom an imaging technique detects a nodule that raises the potential emergence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Although biopsy confirmation is standard in most cancers, several studies have shown that reliable HCC diagnosis may be established by imaging techniques in  patients with chronic liver disease (namely, cirrhosis).1,2 This capacity is due to 2 factors: first, a high pretest probability of HCC in patients with cirrhosis detected to have a nodule>10 mm, and second, a characteristic and specific dynamic pattern of contrast enhancement on computed tomography scanning, magnetic resonance imaging, and  potentially, on contrast-enhanced ultrasound examination.
Source: Gastroenterology - Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Tags: Editorial Source Type: research