Healthdirect Free Australian health advice you can count on.

Medical problem? Call 1800 022 222. If you need urgent medical help, call triple zero immediately

healthdirect Australia is a free service where you can talk to a nurse or doctor who can help you know what to do.

beginning of content

Liver cancer

8-minute read

What is liver cancer?

Liver cancer is a cancer affecting the cells of the liver – the largest organ in the body. It is the sixteenth most common type of cancer in Australia. While it is the seventh leading cause of cancer deaths in Australia, it is relatively uncommon in this country. Improved treatments can offer better outcomes for people with liver cancer.

The liver sits just under the ribs, on the right side of the abdomen. It manufactures bile and blood proteins, filters the blood, rids the body of harmful chemicals, and has other vital functions.

There are 2 main types of liver cancer — ‘primary’, which means the cancer started in the liver, and ‘secondary’, which means the cancer has spread into the liver from another part of the body.

Primary liver cancer

Most people with primary liver cancer have hepatoma or hepatocellular cancer. This begins in the main type of liver cell, known as a hepatocyte.

The cancer can occur as a single tumour and spread through the liver or it can start in many different cells across the liver.

Other types of primary liver cancer include:

  • cholangiocarcinoma — or bile duct cancer, which starts in the cells lining the bile ducts
  • angiosarcoma — a rare liver cancer that starts in the blood vessels

If primary liver cancer is not found early or treatment is unsuccessful, it can metastasise or spread to other parts of the body.

Secondary cancer in the liver

Most cancers that affect the liver have spread from elsewhere in the body. These are known as secondaries. These secondary cancers are named after the part of the body in which they started. Colon, breast, ovarian and lung cancers, as well as melanomas, are all cancers that can spread to the liver.

What are the symptoms of liver cancer?

Often people do not realise they have liver cancer until the disease is advanced. Symptoms of liver cancer include:

  • feeling very weak and tired
  • unexplained weight loss
  • loss of appetite
  • nausea and vomiting
  • pain in your upper right abdomen
  • a lump on the right side of the abdomen, below the rib cage
  • pain in the right shoulder or the upper back, around the right shoulder blade
  • swelling of the abdomen (ascites)
  • yellowing of skin and eyes (jaundice)
  • pale, chalky bowel motions
  • fever

What causes liver cancer?

Doctors do not always know what causes primary liver cancer. The risk of getting primary liver cancer is greatly increased if you have a chronic hepatitis B or hepatitis C infection that has caused permanent scarring or damage to your liver, known as cirrhosis.

You are also more likely to develop primary liver cancer than other people if you:

How is liver cancer diagnosed?

Your doctor will first examine you and ask about your physical symptoms. If there is a possibility of liver cancer you may then need tests including blood tests and imaging (such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computerised tomography (CT) scans, or a PET-CT scan). You may have a biopsy to remove a sample of liver tissue for testing. This is done with a thin needle under local anaesthetic.

If you have secondary liver cancer, you may have other tests to find out where the primary cancer is.

If liver cancer is confirmed, you are likely to be referred to a gastroenterologist, surgeon or oncologist (cancer specialist). You may need further tests to find out what stage your cancer is at. These could include bone scans and examinations of the bowel, stomach and breasts.

Your doctor may do a laparoscopy, using a small tube with a camera at the end, to look at the liver and surrounding organs while you are under anaesthetic.

CHECK YOUR SYMPTOMS — Use the Symptom Checker and find out if you need to seek medical help.

How is liver cancer treated?

A team of medical specialists, nurses and other health professionals is likely to coordinate your liver cancer treatment.

The type of treatment you are given will depend on the stage of your cancer and your overall health, medical history, age and personal preferences.

Often a combination of therapies is used. Treatment options include destroying or slowing the growth of cancer through heating or freezing (ablation) or surgery to remove the cancer.

The growth of cancer can also be slowed or stopped with chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

Tumour ablation

Radiofrequency ablation is used mainly for small primary tumours. The doctor uses high frequency radio waves and microwaves. Thin needles are inserted into the tumour and heat is generated by the current. The heat destroys cancer cells.

Less commonly, the doctor might insert a special probe into the tumour and release liquid nitrogen to freeze it (called cryotherapy). Pure alcohol can also be injected to kill the cancer cells.

Radiation therapy

Your doctor may suggest selective internal radiation therapy (SIRT or radioembolisation) if surgery is not possible. Using a thin tube inserted into an artery, the doctor releases tiny radioactive beads (microspheres) into the liver. These beads block the blood supply to the tumour and deliver high-dose radiation.

Chemotherapy and TACE

Chemotherapy uses drugs to stop, shrink or slow the cancer. If your liver cancer has spread or you have secondary cancer, chemotherapy may be given through a vein to treat the whole body. This also affects healthy cells.

If you have primary cancer, you may be offered ‘transarterial chemoembolisation’ (TACE), a more targeted form of chemotherapy. The doctor inserts a tube into an artery supplying the liver to deliver a concentrated dose of anti-tumour drugs. A substance is also used to partly block the artery, starving the cancer cells of blood.

Surgery

Surgery is only suitable for a single tumour that has not grown into blood vessels. The type of surgery will depend on the size and location of the liver cancer.

Surgery is mainly used to remove small primary tumours. Surgery to remove part of the liver is called partial hepatectomy. The liver can still work well even if up to 80% has been surgically removed. It has a remarkable ability to recover and can grow again after surgery.

If the whole liver needs to be removed, you may be offered a liver transplant. You will need to continue your cancer treatment as it can take months or years to get a suitable donor liver.

Biological therapy

There are treatments that stop cancer cells growing or working, or help the body’s own immune system to destroy them. Biological therapy can be used for both primary and secondary liver cancers.

Endoscopic stent placement

If there is a build up of bile in the liver, because the cancer is blocking a bile duct, you may need a thin tube (stent) placed in the liver to drain the bile.

Palliative care

If you have advanced or late-stage liver cancer, you may opt to have palliative care instead of trying to cure the disease. This can help reduce your symptoms, relieve pain and improve your quality of life.

Looking after yourself

If you have liver cancer, try to eat healthy food and stay active during treatment. Complementary therapies such as remedial massage may assist. Relaxation techniques can reduce anxiety and improve your mood.

Before agreeing to any treatments, discuss the benefits and risks. Be prepared to ask for a second opinion from another specialist or doctor.

Call the Cancer Council Helpline on 13 11 20 for information and assistance.

FIND A HEALTH SERVICE — The Service Finder can help you find doctors, pharmacies, hospitals and other health services.

ASK YOUR DOCTOR — Preparing for an appointment? Use the Question Builder for general tips on what to ask your GP or specialist.

Can liver cancer be prevented?

One way of preventing liver cancer is not to get hepatitis B or C. You can have a vaccination against hepatitis B. If you are exposed to these infections, for example, if you have sex or share needles with someone who has hepatitis, you should be tested to make sure you are not infected.

If you have hepatitis B or C, then your doctor may prescribe antiviral drugs to suppress the infection and reduce your risk of getting liver cancer. Your doctor may also monitor you regularly to detect problems early.

Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.

Last reviewed: August 2021


Back To Top

Need more information?

These trusted information partners have more on this topic.

Top results

Liver cancer | Cancer Institute NSW

Cancer that starts in the liver is called primary liver cancer

Read more on Cancer Institute NSW website

Liver Cancer Treatment - Targeting Cancer

Learn more about liver cancer and the different treatments available.

Read more on Radiation Oncology Targeting Cancer website

Rare Cancers Australia - Liver Cancer

Adult primary liver cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the liver.

Read more on Rare Cancers Australia website

Hepatitis B & Liver Cancer - Cancer Council Victoria

If you have chronic hepatitis B, you're at risk of liver damage and liver cancer. In Australia, there are over 218,000 people living with chronic hepatitis B. Prevention is the best protection – vaccination can prevent hepatitis B infection and related liver cancers.

Read more on Cancer Council Victoria website

Liver cancer | Causes, Symptoms & Treatments | Cancer Council

What is liver cancer? Find out about the symptoms, causes, treatment options and more. Get the facts from Cancer Council here

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

Liver cancer: Overview - Cancer Council Victoria

Information on primary and secondary liver cancer, including how common it is, symptoms and risk factors.

Read more on Cancer Council Victoria website

Liver Cancer - HCC - Liver Foundation

Key points Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is a type of liver cancer It can be cured if you find it at a very early stage There is an effective treatment for almost all stages of HCC If you already have liver damage or cirrhosis you should be on regular screening for…

Read more on Liver Foundation website

Liver cancer | Guide to best cancer care | Cancer Council

Access our liver cancer guide to help you with what questions to ask your health professionals to make sure you receive the best care at every step

Read more on Cancer Council Australia website

What are the risk factors for liver cancer? | Cancer Australia

A risk factor is any factor that is associated with increasing someone’s chances of developing a certain condition, such as cancer. Some risk factors are modifiable, such as lifestyle or environmental risk factors. Others cannot be modified, such as inherited factors or whether someone in the family has had cancer. Having one or more risk factors does not mean that you will

Read more on Cancer Australia website

Metabolic associated fatty liver disease

Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and a common type of liver cancer.

Read more on Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute website

Healthdirect 24hr 7 days a week hotline

24 hour health advice you can count on

1800 022 222

Government Accredited with over 140 information partners

We are a government-funded service, providing quality, approved health information and advice

Australian Government, health department logo ACT Government logo New South Wales government, health department logo Northen Territory Government logo Queensland Government logo Government of South Australia, health department logo Tasmanian government logo Victorian government logo Government of Western Australia, health department logo

Healthdirect Australia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners and to Elders both past and present.