Early Symptoms Of Liver Cancer
Early symptoms of liver cancer – The signs and symptoms of liver cancer do not often appear until the final stages of the disease, but sometimes can occur more quickly. If you go to the doctor when you see for the first time symptoms, your cancer may be diagnosed before, when treatment is likely to help. Some of the most common symptoms of liver cancer are:
Weight loss (without trying), Loss of appetite, Feeling full after eating little, Nausea or vomiting, an enlarged Heart, it feels like a mass under the ribs on the right side, the Spleen enlarged, it feels like a table under cage left pain in the abdomen or in the proximity of the blade of the right shoulder, swelling or accumulation of fluid in the stomach, itching and yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice).
Some liver tumors produce hormones that act on organs other than the liver. These hormones may cause: high levels of calcium in the blood (hypercalcemia), which can cause nausea, confusion, constipation, weakness, or muscle problems; low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), which can cause fatigue or fainting; breast Enlargement (gynecomastia) and / or shrinkage of the testicles in men; high Number of red blood cells (erythrocytosis) which can cause a person to look red and reddened; And high levels of cholesterol.
Many signs and symptoms of liver cancer can also be caused by other conditions, including other liver problems. However, if you have this problem, it is important to see your doctor immediately, so that the cause can be found and treated, if necessary.
Earliest Symptoms Of Liver Cancer
Most primary liver cancer is hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC or hepatoma) when they start in liver cells called hepatocytes. Less frequently, they can originate from the bile duct called cholangiocarcinoma. Early symptoms of liver cancer – In the western world, most people who have liver cancer have the underlying chronic liver disease. These include viral hepatitis (hepatitis B or C), alcoholic cirrhosis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or hereditary diseases such as hemochromatosis. Only a small proportion of people who suffer from chronic liver disease develop liver cancer.
The cholangiocarcinoma can occur sporadically or, more commonly, in patients with chronic inflammation of the biliary glands, such as primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) or the intrahepatic stones. Early symptoms of liver cancer – Liver cancer is diagnosed usually with various examinations, which may include:
1. Test blood. The usual blood tests are not specific for cancer of the liver. Liver enzymes can be normal or abnormal. There are some manufacturers of tumors, including CEA, CA19-9, and AFP, which can help in the diagnosis.
2. Ultrasound. This is a non-invasive procedure, which involves placing a probe on the surface of the skin and taking pictures of the heart using sound waves. Not associated with side effects.
3. CT scan. The computer tomography (CT) is a special x-ray taken from various angles to create two-dimensional images in different areas of the body. This requires you to be still on the table and the scanner moves around your stomach. You will have an intravenous line (iv) inserted to adjust contrast agents to help us rate the liver.
4. Magnetic imaging (MRI). The MRI is similar to CT scan but uses magnetic force instead of X-rays for the construction of images of the body. As the CT requires an intravenous line (iv) for the entry of the means of contrast during imaging.
5. Liver biopsy. A small piece of liver tissue is removed with a needle and examined for cancer cells. This is usually done by a radiologist under the guidance of the USS or CT, with local anesthesia.
6. Laparoscopy. See the section on laparoscopy. This includes the introduction of a telescope (laparoscope) into the stomach under general anesthesia to look at the liver and take samples from the tissue of the liver. It is also possible to perform certain surgeries with the use of the laparoscope, including surgery to the liver or the removal.
What are the treatment options for cancer of the liver? This treatment requires a multi-disciplinary management by doctors of various specialties and may include surgery, ablation, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.
1. Surgical resection. it is the main treatment for primary liver cancer. This is only useful for secondary liver cancer if the cancer is limited to the liver, or in cases where there are other diseases, which can also be effectively addressed. The goal of excision of the liver is the removal of cancer and avoid as much as possible non-involved heart. Depending on the number, distribution, and size of the tumor, it can be a small or large function. The surgery can be done either with an open technique through an incision in the right upper abdomen, or hemocyanin using laparoscopy. The benefits of the laparoscopic approach in surgery of the liver are controversial because they have proven superiority in clinical trials.
2. Chemotherapy. The chemotherapy may be indicated for cancer of the liver. In the primary liver cancer, there is only one proven effective agent called Sorafenib. Sorafenib is not funded currently in New Zealand but can be taken if this is deemed appropriate. In patients with secondary cancer of the liver, type (tablet or injection) and dosage regimen (daily, weekly, or monthly) depending on the type of cancer.
3. Radiotherapy. The external radiotherapy is rarely used for the treatment of cancer of the liver, because the (normal) background the liver is more sensitive to radiation caused by the tumor. Newer techniques, selective radiation therapy (SIRT), where the radiation is given directly to the tumor with an injection of radioactive pellets into blood vessels that feed the cancer are currently being considered in a series of tests to see if it is more effective than chemotherapy. The main advantage of SIRT compared with conventional chemotherapy is that it only treats cancer in the liver.