Ninety patients with benign hepatic tumours,including fifty-four. hepatic cysts (A group)and thirty-six cavernous hemangiornas (B group),underwent surgical management in our departmentfrom Jan. 1963 to Oct. 1993. The patients were34 men and 56 women With mean age 49 years.The tumours were from 2 to 26 cm (mean,7.96 cm)in diameter. We performed regular or irregularhepatic lobectomies for 23 cases, hepatic segm-entectomies for 4, resection of tumours for 13,ligation of hepatic artery for 3,hepatic arterialembolization for 2,extirpation of single tumourfor 6, percutaneous transhepatic injection ofethanol for 4, internal drainage of the cystfor 5 and "unroof" operation for 30. Because itis difficult to distinguish between benign andmalignant tumour of the liver for a great partof the patients, further diagnostic approachshave to be considered, such as fusion ofMR, CT, Tc-99m-labeled red blood cellSPECTimage and tumours biopsy. The hepaticcavernous angiomas which was less than 8 cm indiameter and located at liver parenchyma canbe dynamically observed under follow up andthose more than 8 cm should be surgically removed.The extirpation of single tumour is the firstchoice of the surgical procedures for the tumourwas less than 10 cm in diameter. The "unroof"operation can be done if the diameter of hepatic cyst was more than 5 cm. Percutaneoustranshepatic injection of ethanol was recentlyused to treat cyst which the diameter was lessthan 10 cm within parenchyma of the liver.
