Liver cancer

There are several forms of cancer that originate in the liver itself (primary liver cancer). Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common. There is also a group of people with cancer in the liver due to metastases or growth of cancer from another organ, for example due to colon cancer. More specific information about Metastases in the liver can be found here .

On this page you can read more about the symptoms, the most commonly used examinations, forms of treatment and the treatment team for liver cancer.

Every year, about 800 people hear that they have liver cancer. These are people whose cancer originated in the liver itself (primary liver cancer). Liver cancer is more common in men than in women.

In about one in five patients with primary liver cancer, the cause is unclear. In four out of five patients, the disease is associated with liver damage (liver cirrhosis). Liver cirrhosis is caused by, among other things:

Inflammation of the liver caused by a virus (viral hepatitis)
Bile duct infections
Excessive alcohol consumption
Hemochromatosis (an inherited disease, in which the body takes too much iron from food and stores it in the liver)
Liver inflammation due to fatty disease, often due to obesity

Liver Cancer Symptoms

People who start with cancer in the liver often have few symptoms in the beginning. The cause of the tumor, the location, the size and the number of tumors in the liver determine the development of complaints. It is precisely the underlying diseases of the liver, such as cirrhosis of the liver, that can cause complaints. Complaints that can occur are: