The dangers of liver cancer

This is an automatically translated article.

The article is professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Le Thien Quang - Internal Oncologist - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital. The doctor has more than 15 years of experience in the field of examination and diagnosis of oncological diseases and treatment modalities of radiation therapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy and palliative care.
Liver cancer is a common disease in both sexes. The disease progresses quite silently in its early stages, so patients often miss the best opportunity for treatment. Therefore, the possibility of cure and survival time of liver cancer patients is not high.

1. Is liver cancer dangerous?

Liver cancer includes primary liver cancer and secondary liver cancer. Primary liver cancer occurs in 80% of patients, is a phenomenon where malignant cells appear in the liver, grow uncontrollably, clump together into malignant tumors capable of invading neighboring tissues. nearby and with the blood, the lymphatic system metastasizes to distant organs in the body. The disease is more common in men than women, mainly in people over 50 years of age, who have cirrhosis or are infected with viruses B and C.
Secondary liver cancer is a disease in which cancer cells originate in another organ. metastasize to the liver and form malignant tumors in the liver.
This is one of the most common types of cancer today and its danger is second only to lung cancer. Liver cancer patients may experience complications such as:
Liver failure: the liver is damaged, no longer functional, leading to liver failure. This condition occurs when liver cells are severely damaged. Kidney failure: when liver function is poor, the kidneys will have to work harder to filter toxins for the body and in the long run can lead to kidney failure. Kidney failure reduces the ability to filter and excrete urine, leading to accumulation of toxic substances in the body, which is dangerous to the patient's life. Metastasis: is the most feared complication of liver cancer. Cancer cells from the liver will spread to other organs in the body. Treatment at the metastatic stage is almost impossible to cure, only aimed at prolonging life and reducing uncomfortable symptoms for patients.

2. How long does liver cancer live?

The survival time of patients with liver cancer mainly depends on when the disease is detected. Specifically:
Liver cancer stage 1: is an early stage of the disease, the tumor is still localized in the liver, has not spread to the lymph nodes and other organs in the body. When the disease is detected at this stage, treatment focuses on removing the tumor. Doctors usually recommend surgery to remove the tumor for the patient and then perform radiation therapy to destroy the remaining cancer cells to prevent the risk of metastasis. However, there are also some cases where patients are treated with other methods such as: TOCE, chemotherapy, combination of multiple therapies,... If actively treated at this stage, combined With good physical and mental care, the patient's chance to live over 5 years is about 31%. Stage 2 liver cancer: currently about 30% of liver cancer patients can be detected at this stage. At this time, the tumor has invaded the blood vessels, spread to many tissues in the liver, the size of the tumor is about 5cm but has not yet spread to the lymph nodes and nearby organs. In stage 2, the preferred treatment is surgery combined with radiation and chemotherapy. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy can be used before surgery to shrink the size of the tumor, making surgery more convenient, or used after surgery to kill any remaining cancer cells, preventing the risk of metastasis. apartment. Patients receiving active treatment with a scientific diet and exercise program have a 5-year survival rate of about 19%. Stage 3 liver cancer: consists of 3 small stages: 3A (may be more than 1 tumor, tumor is at least 5cm in size, has not invaded lymph nodes and surrounding organs), 3B (with Cancer cells have invaded the hepatic vein but have not spread to nearby lymph nodes and organs) and 3C (cancer cells have spread to nearby organs such as the gallbladder but have not invaded other organs). far). Depending on the stage, the growth of the tumor and the patient's condition, the doctor will assign a separate treatment course for each person. Commonly used treatments in this stage are radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgery or embolization. The 5-year survival rate for stage 3 liver cancer patients is about 11%.

Liver cancer stage 4: is a stage where malignant cells in the liver have invaded the lymph nodes and some organs in the body such as lungs, bones, colon, brain,... The treatment of cancer At this stage it is very difficult because the tumor size is large and the patient's health is gradually deteriorating. Treatment methods for patients with stage 4 liver cancer are mainly chemotherapy or combination chemotherapy with radiation therapy to reduce side effects and prolong survival time for patients. The 5-year survival time of stage 4 liver cancer patients is only 3%. The survival time of liver cancer patients depends on many factors such as the stage of the disease, the degree of progression, the state of health and the body's ability to tolerate treatment methods. The best way to prolong life is that the patient should strictly follow the doctor's treatment regimen and have a good physical and mental care plan.
The danger of liver cancer has shown the importance of screening and early detection of the disease. Therefore, Vinmec International General Hospital has provided customers with a package of screening and early detection of liver cancer to screen for liver cancer for people at high risk of diseases such as: alcoholics, cirrhosis, family history of liver cancer, cirrhosis, hepatitis B virus infection, chronic hepatitis C,...
Service selection Package for screening and early detection of liver cancer, patients will be examined, consulted and performed tests, diagnostic imaging to evaluate liver function, liver diseases and liver cancer screening. With a system of modern machinery and a team of highly qualified and experienced doctors, Vinmec is committed to the best protection for the health of patients.

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