Understanding Liver Cancer?

1 Answer

Answer :

The liver is the organ in the body that breaks down anything the body takes in and transforms them into chemicals that help the body run. It also takes any harmful things put into the body and removes it from the bloodstream. When people talk about liver cancer they can be referring to cancer that comes from the liver, known as primary liver cancer, or to cancer that started from another part of the body and has spread to the liver, this is known as secondary liver cancer. Liver cancer is more often found in men than women and is the third most common cancer around the world. Other risk factors are age, weight, having a history of Diabetes, and race. It has been found that older people, as well as overweight people develop liver cancer. Also, liver cancer is commonly found in Pacific Islanders and Asian-Americans. Primary liver cancer can be caused by any damage done to the liver, such as alcohol abuse, cirrhosis, chronic infections caused by hepatitis B and C, and birth defects. It can be spotted by a variety of symptoms such as weight loss, yellowing of skin and eyes, abdominal pain, enlarged liver, and chalky bowel movements. If liver cancer is found, usually only a liver transplant or aggressive surgery can treat it with success. This works only if the tumor is very small and diagnosed at an early stage. There are medications that a patient takes orally to stop tumor growth. Patients can also undergo chemotherapy, but often this does not cure the cancer. Radiation therapy has also been shown to shrink tumors and kill cancer cells. The survival rate varies from person to person. About 50% of people diagnosed with liver cancer have a 5 year survival rate. There are many factors that can determine a person's survival rate. Often times, people with liver cancer have other conditions, like cirrhosis, that can lessen their success. Depending on whether the tumor is detected at an early stage and removed, and if a successful liver transplant is undergone, and there are no other serious problems with the liver, then the chances for survival are favorable.

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