Liver Cancer Symptoms & Treatment | Hepatocellular Carcinoma

What Is Liver Cancer ?

Liver Cancer begins in the cells of liver.The most common type of Liver Cancer is Hepatocellular Carcinoma, which begins in liver cell (hepatocyte).

Other Types of Liver Cancer:

• Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma 
• Hepatoblastoma.

What Is Hepatocellular Carcinoma?

Among the cancers that can form in the liver are cancers of hepatocytes (Hepatocellular Carcinoma) and cancers derived from the bile duct (bile duct cancer), as well as Stomach, intestine, pancreas Some cancers of the organs can spread to the liver. Normally, Liver Cancer refers to Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Liver Cancer accounts for 1-1.5% of all malignant tumors. Most often hepatocellular cancer develops (90%), less often - cholangiocellular cancer (10%). The development of Hepatocellular Carcinoma can occur against the background of previous cirrhosis or without it.

Signs And Symptoms Of Liver Cancer :

• Weight loss
• Yellow skin
• Yellow sclera
• Finger deformation
• Loss (lack) of appetite
• General weakness, fatigue
• Pain in the right hypochondrium
• Accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity

The clinical symptoms are different depending on this. If, against the background of signs of cirrhosis of the liver, there is a sharp deterioration in general condition, rapid loss of body weight, pain in the right hypochondrium, an increase in laboratory signs of impaired liver function, the appearance of ascites, and the size of the focal formations according to ultrasound tomography also changes, it is reasonable to assume Liver Cancer.

In other cases, against the background of a favorable general condition, an enlargement of the liver is detected during palpation, and on ultrasound and computed tomograms, a large tumor with small formations or without them is detected (nodular form). Sometimes a large node is not found (diffuse form). With the progression of the disease, intra-abdominal bleeding, jaundice, ascites, and other symptoms may develop.

Liver Cancer is almost asymptomatic in the early stages. When symptoms such as jaundice, swelling of the liver, fever, and general weakness are observed, it is often so advanced that surgery is not possible.

Therefore, those who have abnormal liver functions such as cirrhosis [health] and hepatitis, should have blood tests and abdominal ultrasonography (these tests can be done outpatient) regularly, preferably two to three times a year. Receiving is crucial for early detection.

Diagnosis of Liver Cancer 

The diagnosis of Liver Cancer is established by a biopsy of the tumor (percutaneous, laparoscopic). The determination of fetoprotein in the blood is of great importance, the level of which in hepatocellular cancer is high in 70-90% of patients.

The degree of spread of the disease is also established by angiography. The differential diagnosis is carried out with metastatic cancer. Liver Cancer metastases occur within the body, less often (30-50%) in the periportal lymph nodes, Lungs, and bones.

Treatment of Liver Cancer:

• Liver Resection (surgery )
• Hepatic artery embolization
• Puncture Therapy
• Liver transplantation

Liver Resection (Surgery):

Liver Cancer has a property that cancer cells can easily enter blood vessels compared to other cancers. Therefore, even if the cancer is removed by surgery, it often recurs in another part of the liver. However, the results of surgery have been improving year by year, and the five-year survival rate has now reached 40-50%.

With localized Hepatocellular Carcinoma, a liver resection is performed. Five-year survival is an average of 15-30%, the best results are obtained with highly differentiated cancer.

Temporary objective and subjective improvement is given by ligation or embolization of the hepatic artery. Improvement is also observed with chemotherapy through the hepatic artery or systemically intravenously.

Hepatic artery embolization:

One is called hepatic artery embolization (TAE), which inserts a thin tube from the inguinal region into the artery of the liver and blocks the artery that nourishes the cancer with gelatinous material. At the same time, it is a method of injecting anticancer drugs to stop feeding nutrition to cancer lesions.

Puncture Therapy:

The other is local anesthesia, which involves piercing the liver with a needle from outside the body. There are several methods. These are indicated for relatively small Liver Cancers.

1. Transcutaneous ethanol injection therapy Aim at the exact location of the cancer with ultrasound, and inject 100% ethanol, that is, pure alcohol, into the Hepatocellular Carcinoma. A treatment that kills cancer tissue by the chemical action of alcohol.
2. Radiofrequency ablation therapy and microwave coagulation therapy While observing them with ultrasound, a thin electrode is inserted into the cancer tissue, and a relatively low-frequency radio wave or microwave is applied. This heat burns the cancer cells and kills them. The temperature of heat is about 100 ℃ by radio wave and about 300 ℃ by microwave.

The use of (1) and (2) is not always clear, but recently radiofrequency ablation has been increasing.

These two treatments depend on the location and size of the cancer, but may involve both. In both cases, unlike surgery to recuperate, only one week of hospitalization is required. Both are done as often as possible at intervals of 3-6 months.

In particular, radiofrequency ablation has been reported to be as good as surgery for relatively small (less than 3 cm in diameter) cancers.

Liver transplantation:

Generally, good indications for liver transplantation are said to be “within 3 cancers of 3 cm or less in diameter” or “1 cancer of 5 cm or less”, and such cases are now covered by insurance. Was. Although there are still many problems with liver transplantation, it will be one of the leading treatments for Hepatocellular Carcinoma in the future.