Symptomatic pituitary metastasis from hepatocellular carcinoma: a case report and literature review

Context: Pituitary metastasis is a rare situation in clinical practice and has been estimated to take up no more than 1% of tumors found in sellar region, in which the incidence of secondary metastatic lesion to the sella by hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is extremely rare, only 15 cases of which has been reported yet. The aim of this study is to share the detailed procedures and clinical strategies of this rare case and review the whole 15 HCC-derived PM cases since 1857. Case Description: We present an extremely rare case of a HCC metastasis to the pituitary gland with his condition and clinical course. We then discuss the dominant diagnosis and clinicial therapy of HCC-derived PM and review the literature. Conclusion: This case demonstrated the difficulties encountered in the diagnosis of PM and the need for accurate judgement when confronting pituitary tumors with atypical features. In addition, the appropriate therapy need to be well considered, because of the poor prognosis and severe symptoms.