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The liver is a large organ located in the upper right side of the abdomen, mostly underneath the ribs. It plays a very important role in maintaining the body's overall health. Most of the blood leaving the intestines travels through the liver, where it is filtered of both toxic chemicals and bacteria. The liver uses nutrients in the blood to provide energy for the body by storing and releasing sugars. It is also the main source of proteins necessary for many bodily activities such as normal blood clotting, growth, and nutrition. In addition, the liver creates bile, a fluid that is important for digestion. It is made by liver cells called hepatocytes and is then carried in tubes (the bile ducts) directly into the intestine or to the gallbladder, where it is stored until we eat. When these tubes are blocked for some reason, the bile backs up into the bloodstream, causing a yellow tinge to the eyes, mouth, and skin, and darkening of the urine; this is called jaundice.
What Is Liver Cancer?
Usually, when people speak of liver cancer, they mean a cancer that has begun somewhere else in the body and then spread to the liver. This is called metastatic disease or metastases. Due partly to its very high blood flow and local production of growth-enhancing molecules, the liver is one of the most common places for metastases to take root. Tumors that originally arise in the colon, pancreas, stomach, lung, breast, or elsewhere can spread to the liver, sometimes causing pain or damaging liver function. In the Western Hemisphere, most cases of liver cancer actually are cancers that started in another organ.
Sometimes, cancer may arise in the cells of the liver itself. Cancer of the hepatocytes (the main functioning liver cell) is a primary liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma or hepatoma. Hepatoma usually grows in the liver as one or more round tumors, invading and destroying the normal tissue as it expands. Cancer of the bile duct cells is called cholangiocarcinoma. Cholangiocarcinoma generally grows along the bile ducts in sheets or finger-like lines, making it harder to identify on X-ray studies.
Liver Cancer
Adult primary liver cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the liver.
The liver is one of the largest organs in the body. It has four lobes and fills the upper right side of the abdomen inside the rib cage. The liver has many important functions, including:
Filtering harmful substances from the blood so they can be passed from the body in stools and urine.
Making bile to help digest fats from food.
Storing glycogen (sugar), which the body uses for energy.
Anatomy of the liver. The liver is in the upper abdomen near the stomach, intestines, gallbladder, and pancreas. The liver has four lobes. Two lobes are on the front and two small lobes (not shown) are on the back of the liver
