Why do people who often drink alcohol need to be screened for liver cancer?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Le Thien Quang - Internal Oncologist - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Da Nang International Hospital
Drinking alcohol is the leading cause of liver diseases such as cirrhosis, liver cancer... Especially liver cancer is a dangerous disease but difficult to detect, making treatment difficult and extremely expensive. least. Liver cancer screening is considered the golden key to prevent and treat the disease at an early stage. The following article will provide you with useful information about liver cancer screening.

1. How does alcohol affect the liver?

The liver is the largest organ in the body, taking on an important role in metabolism, detoxification, and also produces enzymes and bile to help digest food well.
Alcohol is considered a poison to many organs in the body such as the brain, liver, kidneys, stomach, in which the liver is the most affected organ. The liver has an enzyme system that converts alcohol in beer and wine into CO2 and water, which is then eliminated from the body.
However, our liver can only process alcohol within the limit, not how much we drink, the liver will metabolize and break down as much. When it has to work too hard to break down alcohol, the liver can't function properly and can be damaged. From there, scar tissue forms in the liver and develops into fatty liver. Long-term leads to hepatitis, which means liver cells are destroyed, then cirrhosis, and finally the most serious condition: liver cancer.
Regularly drinking more than 2 beers or 2 glasses of wine a day can put the liver at risk of damage. According to statistics, the risk of liver cancer in alcoholics is 4-5 times higher than in the general population.

2. Why should alcohol drinkers be screened for liver cancer?

Liver cancer is a dangerous disease because the disease progresses silently, in the early stages there are often no specific symptoms. When the tumor is larger and metastasizes, the patient will have signs such as: pain in the right abdomen (pain radiating to the back and shoulders), abdominal distension, yellowing of the skin and eyes, loss of appetite, weight loss, body weight loss. weaken. Most cases when liver cancer is detected at a late stage, difficult to treat, with a poor prognosis.
Treatment of liver cancer depends on the advanced stage of the disease. For cases detected early, the main treatment is surgery - if the tumor is small and the patient's body meets the conditions for surgery. If the cancer is detected at a late stage, then the treatment mainly reduces the growth of the cancer, relieves the symptoms and helps the patient to improve the quality of life.
Prevention and early detection of liver cancer is considered a golden key to help protect your liver. In order to limit the risk factors for disease, each person needs to be aware of disease prevention such as hepatitis B vaccination, limit the use of alcohol and beer, control weight, have a healthy diet and exercise. appropriate and conduct periodic health checks.

3. Besides drinking alcohol, who needs to be screened for liver cancer?

People with risk factors for liver cancer - especially a family history of liver cancer. Customers have cirrhosis of the liver due to all causes, often caused by viruses, alcohol. Patients with chronic hepatitis B, chronic hepatitis C. People eat spoiled food containing the toxin alfatoxin (caused by molds in peanuts and nuts).

4. Where to screen for liver cancer?

Vinmec International General Hospital is a prestigious address in liver cancer screening. When registering for the package of screening and early detection of liver cancer, customers will receive:
Examination and consultation with an Oncologist. Assess liver function through tests such as measuring ALT activity (GPT), measuring AST activity (GOT), measuring GGT activity (Gama Glutamyl Transferase), measuring total Bilirubin. Screening for hepatitis B and C virus infection by rapid HBsAg test and Anti HCV rapid test. Screening for liver cancer through the quantitative test of AFP (Alpha Fetoproteine). Screening for liver cancer by abdominal ultrasound.

The advantages of liver cancer screening at Vinmec hospitals across the country can be mentioned: a team of highly qualified and experienced doctors. Comprehensive professional cooperation with domestic and international hospitals: Singapore, Japan, USA,... Comprehensive patient care and treatment, multi-specialty coordination towards individualizing each patient. Having a full range of specialized facilities for diagnosis and staging before treatment: Endoscopy, CT scan, PET-CT scan, MRI, histopathological diagnosis, gene-cell testing, .. There are a full range of mainstream cancer treatment methods: surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, stem cell transplant...

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.