| Liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma) is a cancer | | | | your abdomen, that may extend into your back and |
| arising from the liver. It is also known as primary liver | | | | shoulder. Pain that occurs in the right upper area of |
| cancer or hepatoma. The liver is made up of | | | | the abdomen. The liver is a very nerve rich organ and |
| different cell types (for example, bile ducts, blood | | | | can be sensitive to changes. |
| vessels, and fat-storing cells). However, liver cells | | | | Appetite - People with liver cancer may experience a |
| (hepatocytes) make up 80% of the liver tissue. | | | | continuous loss of appetite or feel very full after a |
| Thus, the majority of primary liver cancers (over 90 | | | | small meal. |
| to 95%) arises from liver cells and is called | | | | Worsened hepatitis or cirrhosis symptoms - More |
| hepatocellular cancer or carcinoma. | | | | severe symptoms in people who have chronic |
| Primary liver cancer is rarely discovered early and | | | | hepatitis or cirrhosis are signs of liver cancer. These |
| often doesn't respond to current treatments — | | | | symptoms could include fluid in the abdomen, a |
| thus, the prognosis is often poor. Even when | | | | symptom known as ascites, or the need for more |
| treatments fail to provide much improvement in the | | | | and more water tablets (diuretics) to control the |
| liver cancer itself, pain and other signs and symptoms | | | | amount of fluid in the abdomen. |
| caused by liver cancer can be aggressively treated to | | | | Abdominal pain is a very common symptom, and also |
| improve quality of life. But the most important news | | | | common in children. Unfortunately, because there are |
| about primary liver cancer is that you can greatly | | | | so many possible causes of abdominal pain, and many |
| reduce your risk by protecting yourself from hepatitis | | | | cases are not serious, many cases of acute |
| infection and cirrhosis, the leading causes of the | | | | appendicitis are misdiagnosed each year as |
| disease. | | | | gastroenteritis or some other similar condition, |
| Secondary Liver Cancer Most of the time when | | | | especially in children and infants. Although appendicitis |
| cancer is found in the liver it did not start there but | | | | is an uncommon condition, it can be fatal. And there |
| spread to the liver from a cancer that began | | | | are many other serious conditions that may cause |
| somewhere else in the body. These tumors are | | | | abdominal pain. |
| named after the place where they began (the | | | | Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and the whites of the |
| primary site) and are further described as metastatic. | | | | eyes caused by an accumulation of bile pigment |
| For example, cancer that started in the lung and | | | | -bilirubin- in the blood). |
| spread to the liver is called metastatic lung cancer to | | | | Esophageal varices (occurs when the tumor invaded |
| the liver. The rest of the information given here | | | | and blocked the portal vein and the blood drains |
| covers only primary liver cancer, that is, cancer that | | | | through esophageal veins). |
| starts in the liver. | | | | Rarely: bleeding problems. Many of the proteins |
| Signs and Symptoms of Liver Cancer | | | | required for proper blood clotting are created in the |
| Most people don't have signs and symptoms in the | | | | liver. Remove these proteins and blood clotting |
| early stages of liver cancer, which means the disease | | | | decreases. |
| may not be detected until it's quite advanced. When | | | | Chronic weight loss or wasting. The liver processes all |
| symptoms do appear, they may include some or all | | | | the building blocks. If it fails to process, the body fails |
| of the following: | | | | to maintain itself. |
| Abdominal pain, especially in the upper right part of | | | | |