The liver is the largest organ inside the body. It helps digest food, store energy and remove poisons. Cancer can reach it two ways:
| Starts in | |
|---|---|
| Primary liver cancer | the liver itself |
| Metastatic liver cancer | another part of the body, then spreads to the liver |
Who is at risk of primary liver cancer
- Hepatitis B or C
- Heavy alcohol use
- Cirrhosis — scarring of the liver
- Hemochromatosis, a disease in which the body stores too much iron
- Obesity and diabetes
Why it is often found late
Symptoms can include a lump or pain on the right side of the abdomen and yellowing of the skin. But many people have no symptoms until the cancer is advanced, which makes it harder to treat. Doctors diagnose it with tests of the liver and the blood.
Treatment
Options include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and liver transplantation.
Sources
Based on "Liver Cancer," MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine, drawing on the National Cancer Institute; a work of the United States government in the public domain.
LanguagesEnglish
Licence: CC0 1.0 (public domain) · Adapted from medlineplus.gov
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