As for any cancer, the exact reason why any one person gets liver cancer and another doesn't remains unknown .
March 22, 2005 (Press Release) --
What Causes or Increases Risk for Liver Cancer?
As for any cancer, the exact reason why any one person gets liver cancer and another doesn't remains unknown . However, several things have been noted which increase the risk, called"risk factors":
1. Chronic Hepatitis can lead to changes in the liver cells associated with the most common type of liver cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
a)Hepatitis B -- evidence of prior infection is found in 75% of liver cancer patients worldwide. It can lead to cirrhosis, below. The more common Hepatitis A (spread by feces) isn't associated with liver cancer.
b)Carcinogens (chemicals inducing cancer) such as aflatoxin food contamination (used by Iraq on the Kurds) and nitrosamines.
2. Cirrhosis of the liver (the liver can shrink up and become fibrous and fatty in response to chronic irritation). Causes of cirrhosis include:
a) Alcoholism-- alcoholic cirrhosis leads to 5% of liver cancer.
b)Hemochromatosis is an overload of iron in the liver. 20% of patients who get cirrhosis from the overload may develop HCC.
c)Alpha1- antitrypsin deficiency is a rare condition where a necessary enzyme is lacking to break down waste products in the liver and lung. HCC can develop in 40% of patients who get this type of cirrhosis.
3. Miscellaneous irritants to the liver including:
a) Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is linked to angiosarcoma.
b)Liver flukes are linked with bile duct cancer in China.
c) Thorotrast is a contrast dye for radiology studies no longer used after being linked to angiosarcoma.
d)Radiation Exposure can lead to liver sarcomas, sometimes as long as 5 decades after the exposure.
The common thread to liver cancer risk factors is chronic irritation, which causes the liver cells to divide more quickly than they ordinarily would to repair perceived damage. The more often cells divide, the more the chance for a genetically abnormal one to arise, with the gene changes leading to it's becoming cancerous.
As for any cancer, the exact reason why any one person gets liver cancer and another doesn't remains unknown . However, several things have been noted which increase the risk, called"risk factors":
1. Chronic Hepatitis can lead to changes in the liver cells associated with the most common type of liver cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
a)Hepatitis B -- evidence of prior infection is found in 75% of liver cancer patients worldwide. It can lead to cirrhosis, below. The more common Hepatitis A (spread by feces) isn't associated with liver cancer.
b)Carcinogens (chemicals inducing cancer) such as aflatoxin food contamination (used by Iraq on the Kurds) and nitrosamines.
2. Cirrhosis of the liver (the liver can shrink up and become fibrous and fatty in response to chronic irritation). Causes of cirrhosis include:
a) Alcoholism-- alcoholic cirrhosis leads to 5% of liver cancer.
b)Hemochromatosis is an overload of iron in the liver. 20% of patients who get cirrhosis from the overload may develop HCC.
c)Alpha1- antitrypsin deficiency is a rare condition where a necessary enzyme is lacking to break down waste products in the liver and lung. HCC can develop in 40% of patients who get this type of cirrhosis.
3. Miscellaneous irritants to the liver including:
a) Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is linked to angiosarcoma.
b)Liver flukes are linked with bile duct cancer in China.
c) Thorotrast is a contrast dye for radiology studies no longer used after being linked to angiosarcoma.
d)Radiation Exposure can lead to liver sarcomas, sometimes as long as 5 decades after the exposure.
The common thread to liver cancer risk factors is chronic irritation, which causes the liver cells to divide more quickly than they ordinarily would to repair perceived damage. The more often cells divide, the more the chance for a genetically abnormal one to arise, with the gene changes leading to it's becoming cancerous.
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