Cannonball Pulmonary Metastases as Initial Presentation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a major public health problem, as is considered the fastest growing cause of cancer-related death. Cannonball metastases as an initial finding in hepatocellular carcinoma are considered a rare phenomenon. A 59-year-old man presented to the outpatient clinic for subacute cough, asthenia, and involuntary weight loss. Chest X-ray showed multiple, round, bilateral pulmonary solid lesions. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the chest and abdomen revealed multiple bilateral, contrast-enhanced pulmonary nodules known as "cannonball" lesions and a heterogeneous lesion located in the right lobe of the liver with retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy. A biopsy was performed, and the histopathological result was compatible with metastatic poorly differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma. Due to the advanced stage of the disease, the patient received palliative care and expired two months later. Cannonball metastases in hepatocellular carcinoma are considered a rare finding and represents a poor prognosis. It is important to awaken the interest of clinicians in a timely diagnosis, as well as a possible suspicion of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with this radiographic pattern.