A case of pulmonary embolism associated with hepatocellular carcinoma

Recent literature reveals that pulmonary embolism secondary of pulmonary tumor embolism are dyspnea, hemoptysis, pulmonary hypertension, and circulatory collapse. We experienced a case of pulmonary embolism secondary to hepatocellular cancer in 53-year-old man. From 2 months before admission, he began to experience cough and mild shortness of breath. Within a few days these symptoms progressed to near total incapacity. Pulmonary embolism was confirmed by angiography and the diagnosis of hepatocellular cancer was established by abdomen CT and α-FP (21,000 ng/ml). There was no evidence of intravascular coagulation elsewhere in deep vein of the extremities or risk factors of deep vein thrombosis. Thus we consider that pulmonary embolism in this patients is related to hepatocellular cancer rather than deep vein thrombosis. Therefore we report the first case which hepatocellular cancer initially presented as pulmonary embolism in Korean literature.