Hepatoid adenocarcinoma of stomach: Case report of a rare histological variant

Hepatoid adenocarcinoma of the stomach is a rare form of gastric carcinoma with specific clinicopathological features and extremely poor prognosis. Here, we report a case of a 60-year-old male patient who presented in the outpatient department with pain abdomen and constitutional symptoms. Radiological examination revealed a growth involving the antrum of the stomach while the liver and spleen were normal. The serum alpha fetoproteins were 6590 ng/ml. The patient underwent a partial gastrectomy and microscopic examination of the growth showed two types of histological patterns. Majority of the tumor displayed hepatoid differentiation with adenocarcinomatous foci. Periodic acid Schiff positive intracytoplasmic hyaline globules were seen. The tumor was immunohistochemically positive for alpha fetoprotein. The patient underwent radical gastrectomy, received chemotherapy and has been on follow-up for the past 12 months. Though known to be an aggressive neoplasm early diagnosis of hepatoid adenocarcinoma can help improve the prognosis of the disease.