All patients with liver cirrhosis (scarring and shrinking of the liver) or chronic liver inflammation as a result of hepatitis B or C, have a higher chance of developing a malignancy in the liver: hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cell cancer). More than 80% of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma have liver cirrhosis. The symptoms are severe fatigue, abdominal pain, poor appetite.
It is a malignant tumor whose treatment options depend on when the tumor is discovered and the stage it is in. Patients who belong to a risk group are checked by a Gastrointestinal & Liver doctor for the possible development of such a tumor. This can be done by making an ultrasound, a CT scan or MRI scan and by determining the level of the alpha-fetoprotein in the blood. The alpha-fetoprotein is a 'tumor marker', a substance made by the tumor. This is used to detect or monitor a tumor. You may have been diagnosed with a liver tumor through one of these tests.
Treatment preferably consists of surgery to remove the tumor or a liver transplant. If surgery is not possible, other treatments are possible such as Radio Frequency Ablation (RFA, heat needle treatment), stereotactic radiotherapy (radiation), (chemo) embolization, radio embolization or chemotherapy. Your attending physician will discuss which treatment is possible for you.
The outcome of the treatment depends on a number of things. Firstly, characteristics of the tumor play a role, the stage in which the tumor is, the aggressiveness and the growth rate. Furthermore, the health and liver function of the patient are also important.