Liver Cancer Health Article

QUESTIONS TO ASK THE DOCTOR

• What type of liver cancer do I have?
• What is the stage of the disease?
• What are the treatment choices? Which do you recommend? Why?
• What are the risks and possible side effects of each treatment?
• What are the chances that the treatment will be successful?
• What new treatments are being studied in clinical trials?
• How long will treatment last?
• Will I have to stay in the hospital?
• Will treatment affect my normal activities? If so, for how long?
• What is the treatment likely to cost?

Aflatoxin

—A substance produced by molds that grow on rice and peanuts. Exposure to aflatoxin is thought to explain the high rates of primary liver cancer in Africa and parts of Asia.

Alpha-fetoprotein

—A protein in blood serum that is found in abnormally high concentrations in most patients with primary liver cancer.

Cirrhosis

—A chronic degenerative disease of the liver, in which normal cells are replaced by fibrous tissue. Cirrhosis is a major risk factor for the later development of liver cancer.

Hepatitis

—A viral disease characterized by inflammation of the liver cells (hepatocytes). People infected with hepatitis B or hepatitis C virus are at an increased risk for developing liver cancer.

Metastatic cancer

—A cancer that has spread to an organ or tissue from a primary cancer located elsewhere in the body.