Liver Cancer: Types of Liver Cancer and Treatment Options
                     DR. Punit 
Singla
Liver Transplant and GI 
Surgeon
MBBS, MS, DNB (Surgical 
gastroenterology)

About
Liver 
CANCER
What is Liver Cancer?
•Liver cancer, as can be understood from the name, is a type of 
cancer that begins in the liver cells.
•Liver cancer’s most common form starts in the cells of the liver 
known as hepatocytes and is referred to as hepatocellular 
carcinoma.
•Primary liver cancer is caused due to prevalence of hepatitis 
caused by virsus causing chronic hepatitis.
•Primary liver cancer is commonly caused by chronic infection 
with diseases like hepatitis B & C, alcohol abuse, cirrhosis, and a 
hereditary disease known as hemochromatosis that is associated 
with a high amount of iron in the liver. 
•Statistics reveal that more than half of the individuals affected 
with liver cancer have cirrhosis. Most of the patient can be 
incidentally detected to have liver disease, i.e. they don’t have 
any symptoms. 
•Others can have vague symptoms like fever, fatigue, chills, and 
night sweats. Patients with advanced disease can have symptoms 
like pain and swelling of abdomen, weight loss, jaundice, itching, 
swelling of the feet, and loss of appetite.
Types of Liver Cancer
Four main types of liver cancer are discussed below
•Hepatocellular Carcinoma: It is the most common type of liver 
cancer and is also referred to as hepatoma which accounts for 
about 75 percent of the total cases of liver cancer. It develops in 
the cells of the liver known as hepatocytes and can spread from 
the liver to different body parts like the stomach, intestines, 
and pancreas. Hepatocellular carcinoma has a higher chance 
to occur in individuals which have severely damaged their liver 
due to alcohol abuse.
•Cholangiocarcinoma: It is more commonly referred to as bile 
duct cancer because it occurs in the bile ducts of the liver. Bile 
ducts are small tube-like structures that carry bile from the liver 
to the gallbladder for aiding digestion. Cancer that starts in 
the parts of the bile ducts inside the liver is known as 
intrahepatic bile duct cancer and on the other hand, cancer 
starting in the parts of the bile ducts outside the liver is known 
as extrahepatic bile duct cancer.
•Liver Angiosarcoma: It is a very rare form of liver cancer that 
starts in the liver’s blood vessels and can progress very 
rapidly. Thus, diagnosis becomes quite difficult at an early 
stage. Usually, it is diagnosed at an advanced stage and hence 
becomes very difficult to treat.
•Hepatoblastoma: It is the rarest form of liver cancer and is 
most found in children under three years of age.
Liver Cancer Treatment Options
Ablation (Microwave ablation/ radiofrequency 
ablation): The treatment procedure makes use of 
heat or ethanol injections to destroy the cells of 
cancer. Ablation happens to be a suitable treatment 
option for liver cancer when the affected individuals 
are not suitable candidates for a liver transplant or 
surgery.
Embolization and Chemoembolization: These are the 
procedures used for treating liver cancer. The 
procedure is performed to block off the hepatic 
artery which reduces the flow of blood into the 
tumor by using small particles and chemotherapy 
drugs are delivered along with the blocking 
particles. It is to make sure that the injected 
chemotherapy drugs stay in the liver for a longer 
time.
Hepatectomy: It is a surgical procedure performed 
to remove a portion of the affected liver with 
cancer or all the liver. The surgery is only done when 
the cancer is limited to the liver and has not spread 
to other parts. After the surgery, healthy tissues 
will regrow over time.
Liver Transplant: The procedure involves the 
complete replacement of an diseased complete 
liver and is replaced by a healthy liver from the 
donor. A liver transplant is only performed when 
the cancer is limited to the liver and has not spread 
to other parts or organs.
Radiation Therapy: The therapy uses radiation 
beams of high energy to destroy the cancer cells. 
The high-energy radiation can be delivered by 
either internal radiation or external beam 
radiation.
Targeted Therapy: The procedure uses medications 
that target the cancer cells. These medications help 
reduce the growth of the tumor and cut down the 
supply of blood to the tumor. Targeted therapy is 
performed on affected individuals which are not 
suitable for a liver transplant or hepatectomy.
Thank You