What's liver cancer?
Liver cancer is a type of cancer that originates in the liver. Cancer occurs when cells in the body begin to grow out of control.
The liver is located in the upper right, behind the lower ribs. The liver has many functions, including the following:
- Store nutrients.
- Remove waste products and spent cells from the body.
- Filter and process chemicals from food, alcohol, and medications.
- Produce bile, a solution that helps digest fats and remove waste products.
The liver is made up mainly of cells called hepatocytes. You also have other types of cells, including cells that line your blood vessels and cells that line the small ducts in your liver called bile ducts. The bile ducts carry bile from the liver to the gallbladder or directly to the intestines.
Different types of liver cells can form various types of malignant (cancerous) and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These tumors have different causes, are treated in different ways, and have a different prognosis.
Types of liver cancer.
- Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of primary liver cancer. It most commonly develops in people who have chronic liver disease, such as cirrhosis caused by hepatitis B or C.
- Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (bile duct cancer): It occurs in the section of the bile ducts that lies within the liver and is sometimes classified as a type of liver cancer.
- Angiosarcoma and hemangiosarcoma : These are rare types of cancer that start in the cells that line the blood vessels of the liver.
- Liver cancer in Mexico.
Mexico ranks second in liver cancer mortality worldwide with more than 5,000 deaths per year. According to the Ministry of Health, it is estimated that in Mexico every year 8 thousand people are diagnosed with liver cancer. It has a high level of mortality between 80 and 85%. In addition, an increase in the number of cases is expected, since it is usually identified in very advanced stages. In 2018, malignant liver tumors ranked, in Mexico, the fourth cause of death among all types of cancer, according to data from the Global Cancer Observatory.
In 2020 they rose to third position. One of the main risk factors for developing this disease is having a fatty liver: a condition that is linked to being overweight and obese. More than 70% of the Mexican population does not have an adequate weight.
- Liver cancer in Latin America.
A study carried out in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay shows that the etiology responsible for hepatocellular carcinoma has changed in recent years. Cases attributable to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease have increased nearly six-fold, while the rate caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has fallen by half.
Brazil was the country that contributed the largest number of patients (n = 191), followed by Argentina (n = 98), Chile (n = 49), Mexico (n = 12), Peru (n = 11) and Uruguay ( n=9)
Chronic hepatitis C infection prevailed as the main cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (37%), accompanied by hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, which was responsible for 25% of cases of hepatocellular carcinoma and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. (17%). However, the group observed that cases of hepatocellular carcinoma attributable to the hepatitis C virus decreased from 48% in the years 2005 and 2006, to 26% in 2011-2012. On the other hand, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease increased from 1.8% to 12.8% during the same period, representing the third cause of hepatocellular carcinoma.
- Liver cancer worldwide.
More than 800,000 people are diagnosed with this cancer every year in the world. Liver cancer is a leading cause of cancer death worldwide, accounting for more than 700,000 deaths each year.
Liver cancer (LC) is much less common in the Western world than in subharan Africa and Asia. In these last continents its incidence is so high that, overall, worldwide, it is one of the most frequent, with 1 million new cases each year. In Europe, a higher incidence is observed in Portugal, Greece and Spain than in the rest of the countries.
In the United States and Europe it represents 0.75% of all tumors while in South Africa it represents 20%. In areas where it is abundant, the age of presentation is earlier, while in regions with low incidence it is later, around the 6th decade of life. It is 4 to 8 times more common in men than in women.
Symptoms.
Symptoms of liver cancer can be:
- Discomfort in the upper abdomen on the right side.
- swollen abdomen
- A hard bulge on the right side just below the ribcage.
- Pain near the right shoulder blade or in the back.
- Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes).
- Frequent bruising or bleeding.
- Unusual tiredness
- Nausea and vomiting.
- Lack of appetite.
- Weight loss with no known cause.
Treatments.
Surgery : An operation in which doctors cut out the cancerous tissue.
Chemotherapy : Special drugs are used to shrink or kill cancer cells. These drugs can be pills you take or drugs injected into your veins, or sometimes both.
Radiation therapy : High-energy rays (similar to X-rays) are used to kill cancer cells.
Targeted therapy: Refers to the use of drugs to block the growth and spread of cancer cells. These medicines can be tablets taken by mouth or medicines given through an IV. You will have tests to see if targeted therapy is right for your type of cancer before this treatment is used.
Immunotherapy: Medicines are used to help a person’s immune system recognize and kill cancer cells more effectively.