Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma and Acute Intermittent Porphyria: A Case Report

Abstract

Patients suffering from different forms of acute hepatic porphyria present a high risk of primary liver cancer, specifically hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma, determined by the activity of the disease even though an exact mechanism of carcinogenesis has not been recognized yet. Here, we present the clinical case of a 72-year-old woman who, approximately 29 years after the diagnosis of acute intermittent porphyria, presented with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma with a histological diagnosis of adenocarcinoma starting from the biliary-pancreatic ducts, which was diagnosed during the clinical and anatomopathological evaluation of a pathological fracture of the femur.

Keywords

• acute hepatic porphyria
• cholangiocarcinoma
• delta aminolevulinic acid
• porphobilinogen
• hydroxymethylbilane synthase