Pediatric malignant liver tumors are rare, some of which occur only in children but that are similar to those that occur in adults.
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Epidemiology
Malignant liver tumors account for ~1% of pediatric malignancies 2.
Pathology
Broadly, any malignant liver mass can be defined as a metastasis or primary liver tumor. The commonest source of pediatric liver metastases is neuroblastoma 1.
Primary malignant hepatic neoplasms in children can broadly be classified by their cell of origin 1:
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epithelial (hepatocyte-derived)
hepatoblastoma: most common pediatric malignant liver tumor accounting for two-thirds
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mesenchyme
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vascular
Practical points
An understanding of the clinicopathologic features of these neoplasms and how these features affect their imaging appearance helps the radiologist offer an appropriate differential diagnosis for a child with a liver mass.
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