Metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma to the bone diagnosed by fine needle aspiration in a veteran population.

Detection of extrahepatic HCC to bone is important to avoid any unwanted surgical intervention. In our patient population, the most common site of skeletal metastases from HCC was vertebra, therefore in FNAs of vertebral lytic masses, metastatic HCC should be considered. On FNA, extrahepatic metastases of HCC can mimic other poorly differentiated tumors. They behave in an aggressive fashion, resulting in a grim prognosis. Cytological substrates can be used for future molecular testing, if needed.