ObjectiveTo investigate misdiagnosis of primary squamous cell carcinoma of liver (PSCCL) as cholangiocarcinoma before operation and its clinical manifestations, imaging manifestations, etiology, histological origin, pathological characteristics, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, selection of treatment methods, and prognosis, so as to improve understanding and reasonable diagnosis and treatment of disease.MethodThe clinicopathologic data of a case of PSCCL misdiagnosed as cholangiocarcinoma in the West China Hospital of Sichuan University were analyzed retrospectively.ResultsThe patient was admitted to the West China Hospital of Sichuan University with the right hepatic space occupying. The preoperative imaging examination showed that the patient had the imaging characteristics of hepatic cholangiocarcinoma, then the right hemihepatectomy was performed. The postoperative pathological diagnosis was the PSCCL.ConclusionsPreoperative diagnosis of PSCCL is extremely difficult and it is difficult to differentiate it from primary liver cancer, and it is easy to overlook liver metastasis’s occurrence in other parts of the squamous cell carcinoma, which leads to liver metastasis. It is usually diagnosed by pathological diagnosis after operation, and then original lesions in other parts are excluded by various examinations. PSCCL is treated in a variety of ways, but it’s prognosis is not good. At present, there is no unified treatment principle, most of which are surgery, followed by postoperative radiotherapy and chemotherapy. In most cases, because PSCCL’s etiology is unknown and mechanism is not clear, clinicians can only implement individualized treatment according to patient’s condition.