Successful treatment of non-islet cell tumor hypoglycemia in hepatocellular carcinoma with doxorubicin

Excerpt

Paraneoplastic syndrome is not infrequently presented in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), whose incidence is up to 27–43% during the clinical course in some series [1, 2]. These patients usually have a larger tumor volume, a higher serum alpha-fetoprotein and less favorable outcomes [3]. However, paraneoplastic syndrome as the first manifestation of HCC is uncommon, and only 13% of patients with HCC develops hypoglycemia early in the course of their illness. This group of patients tends to have a longer average survival, but require more intensive hypoglycemic treatment [4]. Systemic chemotherapy alone was ineffective for hypoglycemia in patients with HCC [5]. The author reports here the successful treatment with doxorubicin in HCC patient who first presented with non-islet cell tumor hypoglycemia. …