From 1981 to 1988, 13 patients with liver metastasis and 7 patients with primary hepatic tumors underwent a second hepatic resection for tumor recurrence. A second resection was feasible even after an extensive first resection. Several patients experienced tumor recurrence shortly after the first resection, but lived a long time after the second resection. The actuarial survival after a second resection for colorectal metastasis was similar to that after the first resection. Therefore a second resection for tumor recurrence is reasonable and may prove especially important in individual situations.