Fibrolamellar carcinoma of the liver in the Orient.

We describe, in a 56-year-old man, the first case of fibrolamellar carcinoma of the liver (FCL) in the Orient. Contrary to patients seen in the Western world, our patient has many characteristics of ordinary hepatocellular carcinoma seen in the Orient, i.e., middle age, male, HBsAg carrier, elevated alpha-fetoprotein, presence of HBsAg in the hepatocytes, and chronic hepatitis. These clinicopathological findings suggest a possible relationship between exposure of HB virus and FCL.