Fifteen-year survival of a hepatocellular carcinoma extending into the right atrium treated by surgical resection with the heart-first approach under cardiopulmonary bypass: a case report and review of the literature

Insights into treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombus in the inferior vena cava or right atrium

“…Surgery, as the only potential curative treatment, has been explored in several selected cases. A case of long-term survival of 15 years and cancer-free survival of 9 years was reported by surgical resection with a heart-first approach under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) ( 3 ), suggesting that aggressive surgery together with multidisciplinary treatments might achieve long survival. However, due to the aggressiveness and challenge of surgical resection-massive resection area, potential significant blood loss, and bypass needed, surgical resection is applied in very limited centers.…”