Dr. Praveen, a renowned surgical oncologist and cancer specialist, brings over 15 years of expertise in GI cancers. With a track record of 5000+ successful surgeries. He offers top-notch treatment for liver cancer. 

Let’s know about liver cancer, its causes, symptoms and treatment.

Liver Cancer is a type of cancer that affects the liver cells. When the cells grow abnormally, they multiply and form a tumor. This converts into cancer as it grows and affects nearby tissues and cells.

Liver cancer can be primary, which means cancer develops in it. However, most of the times cancer develops in some other body part, reaches the liver and affects it. This is known as secondary liver cancer.

Liver cancer types include:

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ( HCC) or Primary liver cancer
Cholangiocarcinoma (Bile duct cancer)

People with liver cancer experience following signs and symptoms:

• Unexplained Weight loss
• Upper abdominal pain
• Loss of appetite
• General weakness
• Nausea and vomiting
• Fatigue
• Abdominal swelling
• Jaundice
• Itching
• White, chalky stools

In early stages, most people don’t experience any symptoms. However, If you notice any of the symptoms, you must visit a Liver Cancer specialist in mumbai Dr. Praveen Kammar, at the earliest. 

HCC -Primary liver cancer is caused by chronic liver damaged caused by alcohol abuse, birth defects, or infections like hepatitis B and C, cirrohis, etc. All these things can cause mutation in the liver cells DNA that result in abnormal growth of cells. Most people diagnosed with primary liver cancer have cirrohis of the liver.

Moreover, there are some risk factors that increase the chances of getting liver cancer. Let’s know about these risk factors.

You can decrease your risk of liver cancer by preventive mesaures like:

• Quit or limit alcohol consumption
• Maintain healthy weight
• Eat fruits and vegetable
• Get a hepatitis B vaccines
• Prevent hepatitis C infection by practicing safe sex, avoiding IV drugs and choosing only clean shops for peircing or tattoo.

Once you consult an oncologist and tell him about your symptoms, he will guide you towards further diagnostic procedures. This might include some tests and procedures like:

• Blood test to detect abnormal liver functions.
• Imaging test like ultrasounds, MRI, MRCP and CT scan to detect tumors.
• A biopsy (taking a tissue sample and sending to lab for investigation) to make a definitive diagnosis of liver cancer. However a biopsy us not always needed for doagnosis.

Once the liver cancer is diagnosed, your doctor will do staging based on the size, location and spread of the cancer. The doctor will decide the best liver cancer treatment based on the staging.

Read More: What Happens in Stage 1 of Liver Cancer?

Various treatments for liver cancer in Mumbai include:

1. Surgery

• Surgery for liver cancer is aimed at removing the tumor following the principles of the segmental orientation of the liver. Only small-sized liver tumors and less than 3 in number are amenable for surgery. Sometimes interventions are required to reduce tumor size ( TACE) and increase normal liver volume ( PVE -portal vein embolization )before surgery.
• Liver transplant surgery to replace the diseased liver with a healthy one from a donor. This is possible only in select few patients who fit into the eligibility criteria.

2. Localized Treatment:

These treatment directly target cancer cells and kills them. Some of these include:

• Heating and destroying cancer cells with radiofrequency ablation by using electric current.
• Freezing cancer cells by using a instrument (cryoprobe) that kills cancer cells due to extreme cold.
• Injecting alcohol or chemotherpay drugs directly in the liver tumour. While alcohol is injected directly into the tumour, chemotherapy drugs are injected into the blood vessels supplying the tumour.Alcohol based treatments are not used nowadays due to the availability of better treatment options.

3. Other Treatments

• Sterotactic Radiation Therapy: A procedure to destroy cancer cells using high-energy beam.
• Targeted Drug Therpay:  Its a form of therapy where the drugs target the liver cancer cells specifically. This is used in advanced and metastatic HCC.
• Chemotherapy : It used in cholngiocarcinoma of liver.

Read More: The Latest Advances in Liver Cancer Treatment

Like any cancer, liver cancer can be bad news in a family. It comes with emotional, physical and financial challanges. However, if you take preventive measures, you can decrease your chances of getting liver cancer.

Take care of your liver by eating healthy food items, quitting alcohol and smoking, indulging in safe sex, etc.

However, if you or someone in your family has liver cancer, you can book an appointment with best liver cancer surgeon in mumbai Dr Praveen to begin a treatment.