Liver cancer - hepatocellular carcinoma

Liver cancer - hepatocellular carcinoma

    * Introduction
    * Pathogenesis and causes
    * Signs and symptoms
    * Diagnosis
    * Treatment
HCC or hepatocellular carcinoma is a primary malignant tumor of the liver. Currently represents the third leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Incidence is high in Asia and Africa where the prevalence of hepatitis B and C endemic prone to develop chronic liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma secondary.
Presentation of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma has evolved considerably to the doctor in the last decade. While in the past included for clinical signs of advanced cancer: loss grautate severe right upper quadrant pain and decompensated liver disease is now recognized much earlier because of screening patients with cirrhosis using computed tomography scan and serum alpha-protein.
Risk factors in the development of liver cancer include: hepatitis B and C, alcohol consumption, aflatoxin B1, the abuse of drugs and toxic, hemochromatosis and cirrhosis.
Abdominal pain is the most encountered symptoms of liver cancer and signifies the presence of a bulky tumor or cancer dissemination. In a patient with compensated cirrhosis onset of symptoms include the appearance of ascites, jaundice, muscle emanciere. On physical examination, enlargement of the liver may be the only manifestation.
The diagnosis of certainty is on the basis of examination of liver tissue samples anatomipatologic taken by biopsy of the tumor.
Treatment consists of tumor resection. Many patients are not candidates of this method as they are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Ideally they could be cured by liver transplantation. Only a fraction of patients have access to even transplant and organ donation in developed countries remains a major limiting factor. In these patients, local ablation therapy, including ablation by radiofracventa, chemoembolizarea and chemotherapeutic agents can increase life expectancy and provide palliative methods.