Liver Cancer: What is it and how to prevent it


An estimated 100,000 people live with liver cancer in the U.S.[1] with about 41,000 new cases each year.2 Although less common than many other cancers in the U.S., the rate of newly diagnosed liver cancer has tripled since 1980 and death rates have doubled.[2]  It is often diagnosed in late stages and when it is, the average survival after diagnosis is less than 4 months at stage 4, compared to more than 3 years at the earliest stage.[3]

Early diagnosis and reducing the risks of developing liver cancer would save thousands of lives each year.  Research indicates that liver cancer disproportionality affects Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities, which is the fasted growing racial and ethnic minority in the US.[4] Asian Americans are almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with liver cancer than Non-Hispanic White Americans, and in 2019, liver cancer was the sixth leading cause of death among 25-44 year old Asian Americans.[5] A better understanding of those disparities could save many lives.

This article will explain the signs and symptoms of liver cancer and the steps you can take to prevent it. 

Symptoms and Outcomes of Liver Cancer

Many symptoms of liver cancer are also symptoms of liver damage, [6]which can include:

  • Jaundice (yellowing of the skin or the whites of the eyes)
  • Pain in the right abdomen or shoulder blade
  • Lump in your right abdomen

However, liver cancer can also result in symptoms that are typical of other illnesses:[7]

  • Weight or appetite loss
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • General weakness or fatigue 

Primary liver cancer refers to cancer that originates in the liver, and is usually a single large tumor, whereas liver cancer that originates from another region of the body but spreads to the liver is called liver metastases and usually consists of several small tumors.[6] Liver metastases are more common than primary liver cancer and may spread throughout the liver before they are detected, while primary liver cancer can cause symptoms very early.[6,8]

How can you prevent it? 

There are several things you can do to reduce your chances of developing primary liver cancer.

Get tested for Hepatitis C: Approximately half of all primary liver cancer can be attributed to a single cause: the Hepatitis C virus.[9] The virus causes inflammation to the liver, which can lead to scarring (or ‘cirrhosis’) and then ultimately to liver cancer. You can contract Hepatitis C by being in contact with the blood of an infected person, so injecting drugs. is the most common way the virus is spread in the U.S.[10] The virus may silently damage the livers of infected people for decades before any symptoms appear. In fact, about half of people with Hepatitis C don’t even know they are infected.[11] Of the 3.5 million Americans estimated to be infected with Hepatitis C, 81% are baby boomers who were likely infected before Hepatitis C was discovered in 1989.[9]

Since Hepatitis C often has no symptoms, it’s crucial to get tested. The CDC recommends that all adults get tested for Hepatitis C at least once in their life, and all pregnant women get tested during every pregnancy.[12] Persons who inject drugs or share needles should get tested regularly.[12]

Get vaccinated for Hepatitis B: Hepatitis B is thought to cause about 15% of Liver cancer cases in the U.S. Like Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B attacks the liver, and most people who have been infected don’t realize it.[13] While about 1 million more Americans are living with Hepatitis C than B,[13] Hepatitis B is 5-10 times more infectious and is most commonly spread from mother to child during birth.[14] It is also more commonly transmitted through sexual activity than Hepatitis C.[15] Fortunately, Hepatitis B can be prevented with a vaccine, while Hepatitis C currently cannot. The Hepatitis B vaccine is usually given as a series of 3 shots shortly after birth, 1-2 months after birth, and 6-18 months after birth.[16] As of 2022, the CDC recommends all unvaccinated children and adults age 19-59 receive the Hepatitis B vaccine.[17] 

Asian American and Pacific Islanders make up approximately half of all Americans currently infected with Hepatitis B, despite making up only 6% of the U.S. population. That is likely because Hepatitis B has circulated around many countries in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific for thousands of years, and also because these regions have very low rates of infant Hepatitis B vaccinations.[18]

Get treated for Hepatitis B or C: There are many treatment options for chronic Hepatitis C that can reduce its viral load to an undetectable level and help prevent cancer-causing liver damage. Antiviral medications are one of the most common ways treat the virus. FDA has approved several antiviral medications for the treatment of either Hepatitis B or C in the US, and there continue to be new advances in treatment options. These antiviral medications may vary in terms of safety or effectiveness. For example,  information about two of the most widely used Hepatitis B antivirals (Baraclude and Vemildy) and Hepatitis C antivirals (Mavyret and Epclusa) are shown in the table below.[19,20] FDA has approved all these drugs as having benefits that outweigh the risks in treating Hepatitis B or C, but your doctor may suggest specific medications based on your Hepatitis diagnosis, preexisting conditions, and other health factors.

Name of antiviral Description and usage Unique advantages Side Effects (including % of patients who experience them)
Baraclude (Entecavir) Pill usually taken once a day for many months and up to a year or more to treat Hepatitis B. Shown to be more effective for those with resistance to other Hepatitis B drugs such as lamivudine or adefovir.19 Common

  • Liver Cancer (10-12%)21 
  • Low albumin in the blood, which can cause swelling, weakness, fatigue, or cramps (10-30%)21,22
  • Increases the risk of dangerous bleeding by lowering the platelets in the blood (10-20%)21,23
  • Elevated lipase, which may indicate disease of the pancreas (10-18%)21,24
  • Swelling in your lower legs or hands (10-16%)21

Rare / Serious

  • Kidney failure (0.1-1%)21
  • Lactic acid buildup, which can be fatal ^ 25

Enlarged liver^ 25

Vemlidy (Tenofovir alafenamide) Pill usually taken once a day for many months and up to a year or more to treat Hepatitis B. Very similar advantages to Entecavir when compared to other drugs.19 Research is needed to directly compare this drug with Entecavir to see if one is more effective than the other.19 Common

  • Headache (1-12%)26
  • Abdominal pain (1-10%)26
  • Nausea (1-10%)26
  • Fatigue (1-10%)26        
  • Rash (1-10%)26

Rare / Serious

  • Lactic acid buildup, which can be fatal ^ 27
  • Enlarged liver^ 27
Mavyret (Glecaprevir and Pibrentasvir) Pill usually taken once a day for 8-16 weeks to treat Hepatitis C. Only drug approved by FDA for a shorter 8-week treatment period instead of the usual 12-week period for other drugs.28 Common

  • Headache (10-17%)29
  • Itchy skin (10-17%)29
  • Fatigue (10-16%)29
  • Nausea (10-12%)29

Rare / Serious

  • Reactivation of Hepatitis B (for those co-infected) ^ 30
  • Allergic reaction (which can cause swelling or difficulty breathing) ^ 30
Epclusa (Sofosbuvir and Velpatasvir) Pill usually taken once a day for 12 weeks to treat Hepatitis C. Only drug approved to treat Hepatitis C in children as young as 6 years old.31 It is also the first medication to treat all 6 Hepatitis C genotypes.20  Common

  • Fatigue (10-32%)32
  • Headache (10-29%)32
  • Anemia (10-26%)32
  • Nausea (10-15%)32

Rare / Serious

  • Reactivation of Hepatitis B (for those co-infected) ^ 33
  • Allergic reaction (which can cause swelling or difficulty breathing) ^ 33

^ frequency not reported

Avoid alcohol and smoking: Alcohol is well known to damage the liver; an analysis of 112 studies found that consuming an average of just one alcoholic drink a day was associated with a 10% greater chance of developing liver cancer.[34] The annual average is of 9.5 new cases and 6.6 deaths from liver cancer for every 100,000 adults in the U.S.,[1] but a review of 28 studies that analyzed almost 5,000 new cases of liver cancer and more than 10,000 liver cancer deaths found that moderate and heavy drinkers (at least 1 drink/day for females and at least 2 drinks/day for males) were 42% more likely to be diagnosed with liver cancer and 17% more likely to die from it.[35] 

Smoking also significantly increases the chance of developing liver cancer. A 2018 study of more than 1 million Americans found that current smokers were 86% more likely to be diagnosed with liver cancer than non-smokers. Fortunately, the study also found that individuals who quit smoking at least 30 years ago had the same risk of liver cancer as those who had never smoked, suggesting that younger smokers who decide to quit smoking now can significantly reduce their future risk of developing liver cancer.

Maintain a healthy weight: Studies consistently show that being overweight or obese increases the risk of developing liver cancer;[36] In one analysis of 11 different studies, even after most studies controlled for the effects of age, sex, smoking, and other health conditions, being overweight (BMI between 25-30) increased the risk of liver cancer by 17%, while being obese (BMI 30 or above) increased the risk by 89%.[37] For example, one of the studies, of more than 780,000 Korean men, found a rate of liver cancer of 43 out of every 100,000 for men with a healthy weight (BMI 18.5-25), compared to 66 for every 100,000 for men who were obese.[38] This may be because fat tissue that accumulates in the liver can cause damaging inflammation, which may then lead to liver cancer.[36]

Taking steps to maintain a healthy weight through diet and exercise can therefore reduce the chances of developing liver cancer. An important question is whether losing weight through bariatric surgery also reduces the chances of developing liver cancer.[36] For example, in a study of 190 morbidly obese individuals with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (a type of fatty liver disease that increases the risk of liver cancer), 85% were rid of the disease one year after bariatric surgery.[39] However, more long-term research is needed to investigate whether bariatric surgery reduces the risk of liver cancer or whether other factors are influencing those better outcomes.[36] For example, in a 2022 study, more than 5,000 adults with obesity who received bariatric surgery and more than 25,000 patients who received nonsurgical care were followed for an average of 6 years. While bariatric surgery patients had a lower rate of liver cancer (9 versus 15 cases per 100,000 people per year), this difference was not statistically significant when adjusted for other factors such as age, sex, smoking status, and medication use.[40]  That means that the differences were probably due to those other traits, not to the bariatric surgery itself.

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