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Gastrointestinal (GI) Oncology

Patient and Family Education

Liver Cancer

Risk Factors

Primary liver cancer is most common among people who have hepatitis B or C (viral infections of the liver) or cirrhosis of the liver (growth of scar tissue on the liver). Exposure to certain chemicals also increases a person's chances of developing liver cancer. Chemicals such as aflotoxin, anabolic steroids, and arsenic are associated with liver cancer risk.

The best way to prevent liver cancer is to prevent other diseases of the liver:

• A vaccine against hepatitis B is now available and should be given to all children. Hepatitis C is contracted primarily through the blood and is preventable by using the appropriate safety practices.
  
  
• People who are most at risk include anyone who has injected illegal drugs, persons who were treated with blood products before 1987 or who received a blood transfusion or organ transplant before 1992, persons who have been on hemodialysis for an extended period of time, and anyone who has been exposed to the blood of a person who tested positive for hepatitis C.
  
  
• Cirrhosis of the liver is often the result of alcohol abuse and can be prevented by moderating alcohol consumption.

This page was last updated on: September 23, 2009.

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