Spontaneous rupture of a giant hepatobiliary serous cystadenoma: report of a case and literature review

Hepatobiliary cystadenomas are rare cystic neoplasms that often occur in middle age women, and spontaneous rupture is extremely rare. The exact etiology of these tumors is unknown. Diagnosis is often delayed, while misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment may result in unfavorable outcome. We report a case of hepatobiliary serous cystadenoma with mesenchymal stroma, initially misdiagnosed as simple hepatic cyst with intracystic hemorrhage. The rapid growth of the giant tumor leads to spontaneous rupture, almost turned into a life-threatening event. After emergency formal liver resection, the patient recovered well without recurrence during the 6-month follow-up period. We also reviewed the literature, proposed possible factors for the tumor’s rapid growth, and discuss the current diagnostic and treatment modalities.