Liver Cancer

Liver cancer is cancer of the liver, and can spread rapidly. Almost half of liver cancers are caught early, when there is a better chance for successful treatment.

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Your liver is inside your rib cage, below your right lung. Your liver serves several functions. It helps your body break down and absorb nutrients and prepares these nutrients to be used by the body, removes waste products from the blood through your urine and stool, and creates the cells that help your blood clot.

Liver cancer can be primary liver cancer, which starts in your liver or bile duct, or secondary liver cancer, which begins elsewhere in your body and spreads to the liver. The most common type of primary liver cancer is hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Expert, multidisciplinary liver cancer care

At University of Iowa Health Care Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, your care team is made up of experts who specialize in liver cancer who have been treating and researching liver cancer for decades. They understand the disease, know about the most recent treatment options, and can help you determine what is best for you.

Your care team includes surgical oncologists, transplant surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, pathologists, pharmacists, genetic counselors, nurses, and others, who all work together to design a treatment plan tailored to your cancer and your needs—including your life after treatment.

Some liver cancers may require a liver transplant. Our organ transplant center offers advanced treatments, a compassionate and patient-friendly evaluation process, and shorter times on the organ waiting list.

Risk factors for liver cancer

The most common risk factor for liver cancer is a long-term hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis c virus (HBC) infection. Treating hepatitis B and C and getting the vaccine for hepatitis B can reduce your risk of developing liver cancer.

Risk factors of liver cancer include:

Cirrhosis, a disease that damages the liver
Hepatitis B or hepatitis C infections
Type 2 diabetes
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
Drinking too much alcohol
Being obese, or very overweight
Smoking

Signs and symptoms of liver cancer

Your liver is inside your rib cage, below your right lung. That makes it hard for you or your doctor to notice if it has any tumors or lumps, which makes it important to watch for signs of liver cancer.

Common symptoms of liver cancer include:

Pain in your abdomen or behind your right shoulder blade
Lump or swollen veins below your ribs on the right side
Yellowing of your skin or eyes
Dark urine
Unexplained or unexpected tiredness
Weight loss you didn’t expect
Nausea
Redness in your face

These symptoms could be signs of other conditions that are not liver cancer. Still, if you notice any of them, it’s important to speak to your provider about them, especially if you’ve had problems with your liver health in the past.

How liver cancer is diagnosed

If you have any symptoms of liver cancer, your provider will begin by performing a physical examination and a review of your health and family history.

If additional testing is needed, they may recommend one or more of the following:

Computed tomography (CT). These scans can help your provider see the exact size and position of your tumor.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These scans can help your provider see the exact size and position of your tumor. Your provider can also use this to determine if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
Biopsy. This test involves taking a small sample of your tumor or liver and viewing it under a microscope to see if any cancer cells are present.
Molecular tumor testing. Pathologists perform biomarker testing on tumors to identify proteins and mutations that can help diagnosis and better treat liver cancer.

Cancer patient in hallway at Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center

Every cancer diagnosis is unique.

That’s why getting a second opinion matters. Our cancer experts can confirm your diagnosis and help you understand all your treatment options.

Learn more about getting a second opinion

Treatments for liver cancer

Your treatment for liver cancer will depend on the stage and type of cancer. Liver cancer can be treated several different ways, and sometimes more than one therapy is used.

The most common treatment for liver cancer is surgery to remove the cancer. For some patients, the surgery will be a partial hepatectomy, where the surgeon removes the part of the liver that has a tumor in it.

For others with advanced cancer, a liver transplant is the best treatment. In a liver transplant, the patient’s liver is removed and replaced with a healthy liver from a person who has died and who donated their liver. Or the liver with the cancer in it may be replaced with a piece of the liver of a living donor. After it has been transplanted into the patient’s body, that piece of new liver will then grow to become a full liver.

Other treatments can be used to make tumors smaller and relieve symptoms of liver cancer. These include:

Ablation

A minimally invasive procedure that uses heat or extreme cold to destroy cancer cells and tumors.

Embolization

This treatment uses an injected material to block blood from flowing to the tumors to prevent them from growing.

Radiation therapy

Kills cancer cells with a beam of radiation that is directed toward the tumor in a way that saves the non-cancerous cells in the liver.

We also offer clinical trials, which are ways cancer researchers study new ways to treat liver cancer. Clinical trials give you the opportunity to receive the most recent, advanced treatment options that could increase your chances for recovery and improve your quality of life.