A number of different reasons can be the cause of liver pain, though the most common are certainly digestive upset, fatty liver disease, hepatitis and gallstones. However, there are more serious issues that can cause problems with liver pain, including severe cirrhosis or cancer of the liver. It is also possible for toxic overload to cause pain in the liver, but this can be easily confused with other problems and is therefore difficult to diagnose. Finally, other issues can be indirectly causing pain to the liver. Fortunately, the more common reasons for liver pain are the ones that are often treatable and benign. Pain in the liver usually is found under the rib cage. Acute, sharp and stabbing pains are abnormal, though they can sometimes occur. However, most liver pain is dull and occurs on the right side of the affected person's body, though the back can also experience pain. Most often, gallstones and fatty buildup within the liver are the reason a person will experience pain in that area. These conditions can also be a result of a sedentary lifestyle or a diet which is very high in fat. Similar conditions like irritable bowel syndrome can also present pain that seems like it is originating in the liver, though when this occurs, the problem rarely has anything to do with the actual liver. As with all other symptoms, liver pain can also be associated with more serious conditions, such as cancer, a host of forms of hepatitis and severe cirrhosis of the liver. More often than not, there will not be any symptoms of the illness until it has already progressed, including the liver pain itself. Other symptoms can also manifest, including jaundice. The reason that a person experiences pain in the liver will be the primary factor in deciding what the necessary course of treatment will be. For example, changing dieting and lifestyle habits will resolve most cases of fatty liver while medication can treat irritable bowel syndrome. A mixture of the two can resolve problems with the relatively common gallstones, though surgery can be required for more complicated forms of the illness.