9 signs of liver cancer that are easy to confuse with other diseases

Weight loss, right side abdominal pain, itching, yellow skin, yellow eyes… are signs of liver cancer but are easily confused with other digestive diseases.

Early stage liver cancer can be cured with surgery or radiofrequency or microwave ablation. If liver cancer is detected at a late stage, the tumor is large or many masses are no longer capable of radical treatment, doctors use embolization for adjuvant treatment to limit cancer progression. Therefore, detecting liver cancer in the early stages has an important meaning, directly affecting the quality of life of patients.

It is necessary to consult a specialist doctor to get an accurate diagnosis of liver cancer. Photo: Shutterstock.

Doctor, Dr. Vu Truong Khanh, Head of the Department of Gastroenterology - Hepatobiliary - Pancreas, Tam Anh General Hospital in Hanoi, said that the liver has a very good compensatory ability, so liver cancer often manifests itself clearly when the liver function is not healthy. liver is less than 25%. Early-stage primary liver cancer often does not have any symptoms or symptoms are difficult to detect. In fact, liver cancer is often discovered incidentally during ultrasound, CT scan, or MRI for other intra-abdominal diseases. When there are obvious symptoms, the disease is no longer in the early stages. Here are some signs of liver cancer that are easy to confuse.

Unexplained weight loss: Unexplained weight loss and not due to diet is a sign of liver cancer. Patients can lose about 5% of their normal weight within 6-12 months.

Jaundice, yellow eyes: The skin and eyes of people with liver cancer may turn yellow. When you have jaundice, your urine is darker than usual due to high levels of bilirubin in your blood. Liver cancer can cause jaundice through a number of mechanisms. When a large liver cancer is located near the common bile duct, there may be external compression or direct invasion of the bile duct. Disrupted bile flow causes jaundice, or liver cancer that often develops against the background of cirrhosis due to causes such as chronic hepatitis B, C virus or alcohol.

Itching: When the large bile duct is blocked or due to cholestasis in the background of chronic liver disease or cirrhosis, bile acids produced by the liver will spill into the blood circulation causing itchy skin all over the body. In some patients, the itching of the skin is too severe and does not respond to any medications.

Right side abdominal pain: The liver itself has no nerve tissue, but the thin layer surrounding the liver is a Glisson cyst containing many nerve fibers. Abdominal pain originates from distention of the liver capsule. Therefore, when a liver tumor enlarges and puts pressure or tension, a dull, persistent pain will occur. The pain is often dull and may radiate to the right back. Pain occurs early when the tumor is located near the liver capsule.

Intra-abdominal mass or lump : Liver tumor or liver cancer can reach a very large size at the time of diagnosis. Patients can feel the tumor or tumor in the right hypochondrium when lying on their back, meaning that the disease is not early.

Right-sided abdominal pain or a mass or lump in the abdomen is a sign of liver cancer. Photo: Shutterstock

Right shoulder pain: The liver tumor pushes on the right diaphragm causing pain in the right shoulder. Anything that irritates the right diaphragm can cause right shoulder pain such as infection of the lower diaphragm, inflammation, abscesses, trauma, and liver tumors. To determine if you have liver cancer, you need to see a doctor to do the necessary tests, get an accurate diagnosis.

Shortness of breath: Liver cancer can cause shortness of breath by restricting the movement of the diaphragm when it reaches a large size. Liver cancer located in the right lobe can also irritate the diaphragm by causing local inflammation or irritation, pleural effusion leading to difficulty breathing.

Symptoms affecting the digestive system : Non-specific signs of liver cancer are loss of appetite, feeling very full after a small meal or experiencing symptoms of indigestion. The abdomen can be very swollen, making it easy to experience nausea and vomiting.

Weakness and fatigue : People with liver cancer often feel tired, have no energy, always feel sluggish, unwell or have flu-like symptoms.

Dr. Khanh noted that these symptoms are very common and can be easily confused or caused by many different diseases and it is not certain that you have liver cancer. Early-stage liver cancer or early liver cancer has almost no symptoms. Primary liver cancer rarely occurs on a completely healed liver, often seen in people with chronic liver disease caused by causes such as hepatitis B, C, alcohol. People with this chronic liver disease need to have a routine liver exam every 6 months to have a chance to diagnose the disease at an early stage.