Definition of Hepatic hemangioma:

A hepatic hemangioma is a noncancerous liver tumor made of dilated blood vessels.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

A hepatic hemangioma is the most common noncancerous tumor of the liver. It is believed to be a birth defect, and is usually not discovered until medical pictures are taken of the liver for some other reason.

Hepatic hemangiomas can occur at anytime, but are most common in the 30s to 50s. Women are affected more often than men, and usually have bigger tumors than men.

Babies may develop a type of hepatic hemangioma called benign infantile hemangioendothelioma (also called multinodular hepatic hemangiomatosis). This rare, noncancerous tumor has been linked to high rates of heart failure and death in infants. Infants are usually diagnosed by the time they are 6 months old.