2021 Volume 60 Issue 5 Pages 289-294
Background : Angiomyolipoma (AML) is a benign tumor consisting of three components, namely, blood vessels, smooth muscles, and adipocytes, that rarely arises in the liver. Two cases of AML of the liver are reported, with a special focus on the cytological features.
Case S : Case 1 : A woman in her forties. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) revealed giant atypical cells with naked nuclei, in bizarre shapes, containing clear nuclei. Spindle-shaped cells formed blood vessel-like structures. Based on these findings, malignancy could not be excluded. Case 2 : A woman in her sixties. FNAC revealed three components : giant atypical cells with clear nuclei, adipocytes, and spindle cells. Histologically, we recognized adipocytes, blood vessels, and a variety of giant atypical cells.
Conclusion : AML is a benign tumor composed of giant atypical cells. Caution should be exercised against misdiagnosing it as a malignant tumor. The giant atypical cells show a variety of characteristic cytological features. In case these findings were seen, AML cannot be excluded. This is one of the pitfalls of liver cytology.
