Watch out for signs of liver cancer like artist Bao Quoc

Liver tumors cause anorexia, fatigue, weight loss, abdominal pain, feeling of tightness, severe lower right flank, if cirrhosis can be found larger than the right side of the ribs or above the navel.

According to 1 specialist Ngo Quang Duy, Department of Gastrointestinal - Hepatobiliary - Hepatology, Gia Dinh People's Hospital, liver tumors have two forms:

Firstly, benign tumors include liver cysts, hepatocellular adenomas, nodular liver cell hyperplasia and some other less common types. The second is malignant neoplasms, including primary liver cancer (HCC), cholangiocarcinoma, liver cancer (secondary) and others.

Vietnam is the country with the highest rate of liver cancer in the world. In which men get more, 4 to 8 times more women, often in the age of 45. The cause of liver cancer or liver cancer has not been clarified yet. There are only a few risk factors for liver cancer such as:

1. Cirrhosis : Liver cancer usually occurs on cirrhosis, accounting for 65 to 85% of cases. More than 50% of people with cirrhosis are alcohol.
2. Hepatitis : Experimental as well as epidemiological studies show a clear association between primary liver cancer and hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
3. Chemical substances such as aflatoxin B1, estrogen, anabolic steroids, dioxin . also cause liver cancer.

Liver tumors and liver cancer often have no obvious symptoms. In the early stages, manifesting poor disease, it is rarely diagnosed early, the patient only stumbles upon a physical examination. In the late stage, clinical and subclinical symptoms are relatively clear, but at this time the disease has become severe, poor treatment effectiveness, very bad prognosis.

Artist Bao Quoc after surgery to remove the liver tumor in the United States.

In general, the common symptoms of liver tumors are loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss, abdominal pain, feeling of anger, severe lower right flank. When cirrhosis of the liver, the doctor can see that the liver is larger in the area below the right side of the ribs or on the navel, the abdomen is belly (abdominal water). Liver tumors that block the bile ducts at an early stage can make the skin turn yellow, sometimes with a mild fever. In the late stages of hepatocellular cancer, the whole body skin may turn pale yellow.

Diagnosis of subclinical liver tumors is often based on the following indicators:

1. AFP (alpha-Fetoprotein) is produced by liver parenchyma. AFP of 500ng / ml or more, the diagnosis is almost certain that patients with primary liver cancer. AFP below 500 ng / ml is suspected of primary liver cancer.
2. Based on the resulting image. In particular, abdominal ultrasound has a high diagnostic value (90% of the tumor can be determined). Computerized tomography and contrast injection also give a clear picture. Angiography is a very sensitive method of detecting small size cancer. Magnetic resonance is highly sensitive, detects small tumors, easy to see blood vessels without contrast injection. Liver biopsy is quite accurate, the successful diagnosis rate is 90%. Perform a biopsy by poking small needles under the guidance of ultrasound or CT scans.

Liver tumors without early treatment may lead to complications. If benign tumors, complications are mainly in liver cysts such as infection in cysts, hemorrhage in cysts, large liver cysts causing pain . Cases of malignant neoplasms if primary liver cancer has a very poor prognosis , move fast. Common complications are tumors that rupture blood, vomit blood and break the esophageal vein, invade nearby organs.

The disease can be treated with many methods. Including chemotherapy, embolization in combination with chemotherapy (OCE, TACE), local radiation therapy, cutaneous hepatic tumor destruction by injection of Ethano percutaneous Ethanol Injection - PEI, tumor destruction by high-frequency electrolyte (RFA - RadiFrequency Ablation), liver cutting surgery.

Note: Liver resection is indicated when the patient's physical condition and function is good, allowing the patient to endure the operation. In addition, it depends on many factors such as the amount of liver tissue cut and the amount remaining to maintain liver function, level of liver failure, and fiber level. Only cut liver for patients with cirrhosis of Child A and B. Levels contraindicated when distant metastasis, signs of penetrating large branches of portal vein, hepatic veins, esophageal veins.

Treatment of liver tumors often involves a combination of methods, none of which is optimal.

Treatment of liver tumors often involves a combination of methods, none of which is optimal. Therefore, the doctor will base on each patient's condition with the appropriate combination. Cases of small tumors below 3cm can apply embolization, skin ablation by injection ethanol or RFA. If a large tumor cannot be operated, it can be treated with embolism support to slow the progress of the tumor.

Patients after surgery for liver tumors often exhibit liver failure, depending on the amount of liver parenchyma remaining should be closely monitored. Anemia and malnutrition after surgery also occur in patients who cut the liver, so blood and nutrients are needed. In addition to monitoring and preventing complications such as postoperative pneumonia, pleural effusion .

To prevent liver tumors, should limit the agents causing hepatitis, cirrhosis. Specifically, prevention of hepatitis B, C, in which the most effective is vaccination for children and adults. Patients with hepatitis need to monitor and treat the regimen properly, limit alcohol consumption, avoid using moldy foods such as cereals and vegetables for a long time. When in doubt, get regular checkups for early detection with AFP, ultrasound or CT scans. High or low therapeutic effect depends very much on the detection of disease sooner or later.