Liver cancer does not usually cause any symptoms of its own. A few patients might have a lump or mild pain in the upper belly, or feel full early on when they try to eat.

Others may have symptoms that are caused by the liver disease they had before they got cancer. Those symptoms can get worse or come back because of the cancer. They include:

• Swelling of the belly or legs
• The skin or white part of the eyes turning yellow

If you have these symptoms, tell your doctor or nurse.

Yes. If your doctor suspects you have liver cancer, he or she will do 1 or more of the following tests:

• Blood tests
• An MRI scan, CT scan, ultrasound, or other imaging test – Imaging tests create pictures of the inside of the body and can show abnormal growths.
• Biopsy – For this test, a doctor will remove a small sample of tissue from the liver. Another doctor will look at the sample under a microscope to see if it has cancer.

Cancer staging is a way in which doctors find out if a cancer has spread past the layer of tissue where it began and, if so, how far.

Liver cancer can be treated in different ways. Treatment depends on the stage of your cancer and how healthy your liver is. The different treatments include:

• Surgery – Liver cancer can sometimes be treated with surgery to remove the part of the liver with the cancer.
• Liver transplant – A liver transplant is a type of surgery in which a doctor replaces a diseased liver with a healthy liver.
• Ablation therapy – Ablation therapy is a procedure that can kill cancer cells in the liver. It does not involve surgery. Doctors can do ablation therapy in different ways. They can kill the cancer cells using heat, a laser, or by injecting a special alcohol or acid directly into the cancer.
• Blocking the cancer’s blood supply – Doctors can do a procedure called “embolization” to block off the blood vessel that sends blood to the cancer. This keeps the cancer from growing.
• Radiation therapy – Radiation kills cancer cells.
• Chemotherapy – Chemotherapy is the term doctors use to describe a group of medicines that kill cancer cells.

After treatment, you will be checked every so often to see if the cancer comes back. Regular follow up tests usually include exams, blood tests, and imaging tests.

You should also watch for the symptoms listed above. Having those symptoms could mean the cancer has come back. Tell your doctor or nurse if you have any symptoms.

If you had a liver transplant, you will need to take medicines called “anti-rejection medicines” for the rest of your life. These medicines help keep your body from reacting badly to your new liver.

If the cancer comes back or spreads, your doctor will talk with you about possible treatment choices. These might include the treatments listed above.

It is important to follow all your doctor’s instructions about visits and tests. It’s also important to talk to your doctor about any side effects or problems you have during treatment.

Getting treated for liver cancer involves making many choices, such as what treatment to have.

Always let your doctors and nurses know how you feel about a treatment. Any time you are offered a treatment, ask:

• What are the benefits of this treatment? Is it likely to help me live longer? Will it reduce or prevent symptoms?
• What are the downsides to this treatment?
• Are there other options besides this treatment?
• What happens if I do not have this treatment?