Liver cancers

Introduction

The liver is the body's largest organ. It has many jobs, including: 

• filtering harmful substances out of the blood
• creating bile, which helps break down fat from food
• making extra energy sources in the form of a sugar called glucose. 

Liver cancer is rare in children, but there are two common types.

1. hepatoblastoma - more common in boys and usually found in children under three.
2. hepatocellular carcinoma– more common in adults but can be found in children between 10 and 16.

Liver cancer may not show any signs of symptoms until it has become more advanced. Symptoms can include:

• a lump or mass found in the upper right side or middle of the belly
• belly pain
• loss of appetite
• nausea and vomiting
• abnormal or sudden weight loss
• diarrhoea – loose poos that are hard to control
• jaundice – a yellow colour in the skin and whites of the eyes
• general itchiness
• fever
• Irritability and restlessness.

Liver cancer is diagnosed by:

• checking your child’s symptoms
• x-rays
• blood tests to check for a protein made by liver tumours
• CT or MRI scans
• a biopsy - taking a tumour sample and testing it in a lab.

After diagnosis, your child will need some other tests to check:

• whether the cancer has spread to other body parts.
• whether their organs are healthy enough for treatment.

Children with liver cancer will see an oncologist for treatment. An oncologist is a specialist doctor who works with tumours and cancer.

Treatment options generally include

• surgery to remove the cancer
• chemotherapy to shrink the tumour and destroy any cancer cells.

Children with hepatoblastoma may need chemotherapy to:

• shrink the tumour before surgery
• kill any remaining cancer cells after surgery
• treat cancer when surgery cannot be done safely or effectively.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma does not respond well to chemotherapy and is usually treated with surgery alone.