The authors reviewed sonographic findings of 66patients with metastatic liver tumors originating in the gastrointestinal tract in order to characterize the sonographic features. Primary sites of metastatic liver tumors were stomach(45 patients), pancreas(10patients), small intestine (1 patient), and colon (10 patients). Eight cases (12%) showed two or three tumors, and the remainder showed more than three tumors. In 50 cases(76%), the tumors were in both lobes of the liver. Size of the tumors was large(>5cm) (11%), medium (3-5cm) (41%), and small(<3cm) (48%).
Echogenicity of the tumors was hyperechoic (68%), hypoechoic (15%), isoechoic(11%), and mixed pattern (6%). There was no significant correlation between echogenicity and size of the tumor. Peripheral halo was seen in 70%. There was no correlation between the presence of the halo and siae of the tumor. The smaller tumors usually had a thicker halo compared with those of larger ones, and the thick halo usually had a relatively clear outer margin. Edge shadow was found in five cases, posterior enhancement in one case, and posterior shadow in one case. Edge shadow was related to the distinctness of the outer margin of the peripheral halo.
Variation in the primary site of the gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma originated metastatic liver tumors did not cause any signigicant difference in its echogenicity, size, location, number or distribution.
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