Liver Cancer, from the CureRays guide library.

Liver cancer starts in the cells of the liver; when found early it can often be cured, and precise radiation now gives many patients a non-surgical path to control.

What it is.

The liver is a large organ under the right ribs that filters the blood, makes proteins, and helps digest food. Most primary liver cancer is hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which usually arises in a liver already scarred by long-standing hepatitis B or C, heavy alcohol use, or fatty liver disease. Because the liver works quietly, tumors can grow without symptoms, so people at risk benefit from regular ultrasound screening. Caught small, liver cancer can frequently be cured; even when surgery isn't possible, focused radiation and other liver-directed treatments can control it for years.

How radiation treats it.

Radiation uses focused high-energy x-rays to break the DNA inside cancer cells so they can no longer divide and die off. The liver is sensitive, so modern stereotactic radiation uses breath-control and on-board imaging to lock onto a tumor that moves as you breathe, concentrating the dose on the cancer while protecting healthy liver tissue. Treatments are painless and brief — usually a handful of sessions over one to two weeks. Most people feel well; some notice temporary fatigue or mild nausea that settles afterward.

The ways we can treat it.

Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Delivers a few precise high-dose treatments to a liver tumor while sparing the healthy liver around it. It is an effective option when surgery and ablation aren't feasible, and controls most small tumors.

Selective internal radiation (radioembolization). Tiny radioactive beads are threaded through a catheter into the artery feeding the tumor, lodging there and irradiating the cancer from the inside while sparing the rest of the body.

Palliative external-beam radiation. Eases pain or bleeding when cancer has grown large or spread, using gentle, targeted treatments to relieve symptoms.

Questions we hear often.

Can liver cancer be cured? Yes — when it's found early as a single small tumor in a reasonably healthy liver, surgery, transplant, ablation, or focused radiation can cure it. Screening people at risk is the key to finding it that early.

Why do I need radiation if I have cirrhosis? Surgery may be too risky in a scarred liver, but stereotactic radiation can destroy a tumor without an operation and while protecting the remaining liver, making it a valuable option.

Who should be screened for liver cancer? People with cirrhosis or chronic hepatitis B or C benefit from a liver ultrasound (often with a blood test) about every six months, because early tumors are the ones that can be cured.

This guide is informational only. It is not medical advice — please confirm anything here with your care team.