Liver Cancer

Primary liver cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the liver. Cancer that forms in other parts of the body and spreads to the liver is not primary liver cancer. The liver is one of the largest organs in the body. It has two lobes and fills the upper right side of the abdomen inside the rib cage.

General Information About Adult Primary Liver Cancer

KEY POINTS

Adult primary liver cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the liver.
There are two types of adult primary liver cancer.
Having hepatitis or cirrhosis can affect the risk of adult primary liver cancer.
Signs and symptoms of adult primary liver cancer include a lump or pain on the right side.
Tests that examine the liver and the blood are used to detect (find) and diagnose adult primary liver cancer.
Certain factors affect prognosis (chance of recovery) and treatment options.

Read the full article on the National Cancer Institute website.

General Information About Bile Duct Cancer

KEY POINTS

Bile duct cancer is a rare disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the bile ducts.
Having colitis or certain liver diseases can increase the risk of bile duct cancer.
Signs of bile duct cancer include jaundice and pain in the abdomen.
Tests that examine the bile ducts and nearby organs are used to detect (find), diagnose, and stage bile duct cancer.
Different procedures may be used to obtain a sample of tissue and diagnose bile duct cancer.
Certain factors affect prognosis (chance of recovery) and treatment options.

Read the full article on the National Cancer Institute website.

Non-standard treatment options

Histotripsy
Source: The University of Chicago Medical Center

Treating Liver Tumors with Sound Waves

Histotripsy is an innovative, non-invasive treatment for liver tumors that uses a robotic machine to target and destroy cancer tissue with ultra-precise sound waves. It’s a powerful tool for doctors to treat certain tumors without any needles, radiation or surgery, even allowing most patients to go home the same day.

Before histotripsy treatment, doctors use ultrasound imaging – like what is used to see babies in the womb – to locate the tumor, determine the size of the area that needs to be treated, and target and monitor the treatment area during the procedure. After doctors program the histotripsy robot with the tumor’s coordinates, the machine precisely generates focused sound waves that create a “bubble cloud” inside the targeted area, which disrupts and destroys only the cancerous tissue.

“One of the best things about how this technology works is that it’s protective of things we don’t want to damage,” said Osman Ahmed, MD, associate professor of radiology at UChicago Medicine. “A histotripsy procedure can damage or kill a tumor while leaving important structures like blood vessels and bile ducts intact.”

Continue reading at University of Chicago Medicine

First UK patients have liver cancer successfully treated using pioneering non-invasive ultrasound technology

Source: Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Two patients have become the first in the UK to undergo a pioneering new treatment for liver cancer in a partnership between Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital and St James’s Hospital in Leeds as part of US-based HistoSonics’ #HOPE4LIVER study.

A patient from Newcastle and Sheila Riley, 68 from Bradford received the treatment which uses the novel science of histotripsy, a form of therapeutic focused ultrasound, to destroy targeted primary and metastatic liver tumours without the need for invasive incisions or needles entering the patient’s body.

Dr Peter Littler, Consultant Interventional Radiologist at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle said: “This is fascinating cutting edge technology with the potential to kill a liver cancer without breaking the skin.

“It was very exciting for our team to deliver the first treatment in the UK. It is a pleasure to work with colleagues in Leeds to offer this treatment to our patients as part of the HOPE4LIVER trial.”

Sheila said: “My cancer was first diagnosed in June 2021 and I was over the moon to be offered this new treatment so quickly. Whilst I was in hospital the care I received was first class; I got looked after like a Queen! I feel very fortunate to have had this treatment; I was discharged the following day and have continued recuperating at home.”

The first treatment using the new technology by HistoSonics was undertaken at a Florida hospital in February 2021 with a patient in Germany subsequently becoming the first in Europe.

Newcastle Hospitals was the first location in the UK to deliver the treatment to a patient in the #HOPE4LIVER study and is working in collaboration with Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust to deliver the treatment to patients in Newcastle and Leeds. It is hoped following successful trials this new method of treatment will become available more widely for eligible patients in the UK.

Newcastle hospitals in one of five centres in Europe taking part in the US-based HistoSonics’ #HOPE4LIVER study

Studies

This 2023 Review concluded: Ongoing human clinical trials have shown promising early results. Histotripsy has recently been approved by the FDA to noninvasively treat liver tumors. In addition to being used as a standalone therapy, the combination of histotripsy with other treatment modalities such as immunotherapy and chemotherapy is currently under investigation in various tumor models.

Continue reading at The University of Chicago Medical Center

Coleys Toxins
The last recorded successful application of the toxin was in China in 1980 as a primary therapy for the treatment of terminal liver cancer. The patient received 68 injections of Coley’s toxin during the 34 weeks of therapy. After this procedure, the symptoms disappeared completely.

Propranolol
This study says: In conclusion, this study revealed that propranolol could improve OS in patients with unresectable/metastatic HCC [liver cancer]. Propranolol could not only lower the risk of variceal bleeding and HCC development in patients with cirrhotic livers but also lower the mortality risk in those with advanced HCC.

AHCC
In this study a total of 269 patients with histologically confirmed liver cancers were studied. All of them underwent resection of a liver tumor. Of the 269 patients, 113 received AHCC orally after undergoing curative surgery (AHCC group). The AHCC group had a significantly longer no recurrence period …and an increased overall survival rate when compared to the control group.
See AHCC page

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Page updated September 2024