How is liver cancer diagnosed?
Liver cancer is also known as hepatocellular carcinoma, HCC. It is a cancer that originates in liver. Liver cancers are malignant tumors that grow on the surface or inside the liver.
Diagnosis of Liver Cancer
Blood Tests
- Liver cancer depends so much on the vigilance of the physician screening with a tumor marker (alpha-fetoprotein) in the blood and radiological imaging studies.
- If the blood tests become abnormal or worsen due to liver cancer, this usually signifies extensive cancerous involvement of the liver.
- in liver cancer, the cancerous liver cells may take on the characteristics of other types of cells.
- For example, liver cancer cells sometimes can produce hormones that are ordinarily produced in other body systems.
- These hormones then can cause certain abnormal blood tests
- These include a high red blood count (erythrocytosis), low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and high blood calcium (hypercalcemia).
- High serum cholesterol (hypercholesterolemia), is seen in up to 10% of patients from Africa with liver cancer.
- The high cholesterol occurs because the liver cancer cells are not able to turn off (inhibit) their production of cholesterol.
- There is no reliable or accurate screening blood test for liver cancer.
- The most widely used biochemical blood test is alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)
- AFP is a protein normally made by the immature liver cells in the fetus.
In adults, high blood levels (over 500 nanograms/milliliter) of AFP are seen in only three situations:
- Liver cancer.
- Germ cell tumors (cancer of the testes and ovaries).
- Metastatic cancer in the liver (originating in other organs).
There are a number of other liver cancer tumor markers like:
- Des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin (DCP),
- A variant of the gamma-glutamyltransferase enzymes,
- Variants of other enzymes (for example, alpha-L-fucosidase).
Imaging Studies
These studies provide information
- as to the size of the tumor.
- the number of tumors.
- whether the tumor has involved major blood vessels locally or spread outside of the liver.
Ultrasound Examination
- It is usually the first study ordered if liver cancer is suspected in a patient.
- The accuracy of an ultrasound depends very much on the technician and radiologist.
- Computerized axial tomography (CT scan) is a very common study used in the U.S.
- The ideal CT study is a multi-phase, spiral CT scan using oral and intravenous contrast material.
Pictures are taken in three phases:
- Without intravenous contrast.
- With intravenous contrast (enhanced imaging) that highlights the arterial system (arterial phase).
- When the contrast is in the venous phase.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
- It can provide very clear images of the body.
- Its advantage over CT is that MRI can provide sectional views of the body in different planes.
Others
- If there is uncertainty about the diagnosis, the presence of liver cancer may be confirmed with a biopsy.
- Tissue from the liver is removed through a needle or during an operation and checked under a microscope for the presence of cancer cells.
- Laproscopy is another method.
Staging
The following stages are used for adult primary liver cancer:
- Localized resectable
Cancer is found in one place in the liver and can be completely removed by surgery.
- Localized unresectable
Cancer is found only in one part of the liver, but the cancer cannot be totally removed.
- Advanced
Cancer has spread through much of the liver or to other parts of the body.
- Recurrent
Cancer has come back or recurred after it was treated. It may come back in the liver or in another part of the body.
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Categories: Body, Cancer, Cells, Complications, cure, Detection, Diagnosis, digestion, Digestive System, Disease, Disorder, growth, health, Healthy, Liver, Metabolism Tags: Blood tests, Body, Brain, Break down, Chemicals, Cholesterol, Detoxification, Detoxify, Diagnosis, digestion, Fats, Functions, health, Healthy, Human, Imaging, Liver, Metabolism, MRI, Organs, Regulate, Staging, Store, Sugar, Ultrasound, Vital
Colon Cancer : Diagnosis and Treatment of Colon Cancer
If your signs and symptoms indicate that you could have colon cancer, your doctor may recommend one of more tests to be done:
- Blood Tests
- Using a scope to examine the inside of your colon.
- Using dye and X-rays to make a picture of your colon.
- Using multiple CT images to create a picture of your colon.
- Manual examination by inserting a gloved finger into the rectum in order to identify lumps or adenomas.
- Biopsy is a painless procedure when a tiny sample of the affected tissue is taken and used to trace the cancerous cells.
If cancer is present, the next step is to determine how advanced the tumour is and how far it has spread. Staging helps determine what treatments are most appropriate for you.
- Stage 0: Cancer is in the earliest stage.
- Stage 1: Cancer has grown through the mucosa but hasn’t spread beyond the colon wall or rectum.
- Stage 2: Cancer has grown to the wall of colon or rectum but has not spread to lymph nodes.
- Stage 3: Cancer has affected lymph nodes but not other parts.
- Stage 4: Cancer has spread to other parts and organs.
- Recurrent: This means your cancer has come back after treatment.
TREATMENT FOR COLON CANCER
The main focus is removing the primary tumour that caused the cancer and preventing the spread of malignant cells further into the body. Depending on the stage, there are three primary treatment options are: surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.
SURGERY
- Surgery involves removing the affected part and conjoining the healthy parts of the colon.
- How much of your colon has to be removed depends on the location and particular characteristics of your tumor.
- The surgeon can recommend colectomy if your colon cancer has grown into or through your colon in which colon is removed along with a margin of normal tissue on either side of the cancer. Nearby lymph nodes are usually also removed and tested for cancer.
CHEMOTHERAPY
- Chemotherapy can be used to destroy cancer cells after surgery, to control tumor growth or to relieve symptoms of colon cancer.
- It uses drugs to destroy cancer cells.
RADIATION THERAPY
- It uses powerful energy sources, such as X-rays, to kill any cancer cells that might remain after surgery.
- It helps to shrink large tumors before an operation so that they can be removed more easily.
- It can also be used to relieve symptoms of colon cancer and rectal cancer.
Categories: abdomen, Cancer, Chemotherapy, Colon, Colon Cancer, Radiation Therapy, Surgery, Treatment Tags: Benign, Body, Cancer, Cancerous, causes, Chemotherapy, Colon, Colon Cancer, Diagnosis, digestion, Hereditary, Intestine, Large intestine, Malignant, Material. Digestive System, Old, Radiation therapy, Rectum, Risk Factors, Staging, Surgery, Symptoms, Treatment, Waste
How is staging determined for thyroid cancer?
If the diagnosis is thyroid cancer, the doctor needs to know the stage, or extent, of the disease to plan the best treatment. Staging is a careful attempt to learn whether the cancer has spread and, if so, to what parts of the body.
Staging is based on the results of the physical exam, biopsy, and imaging tests, ultrasound, CT scan, MRI, chest x-ray, and/or nuclear medicine scans.
The TNM method is the most universally used staging method and applies to both papillary and follicular thyroid cancers.
- T indicates the size of the main (primary) tumor and whether it has grown into nearby areas.
- N describes the extent of spread to nearby (regional) lymph nodes. Lymph nodes are small bean-shaped collections of immune system cells that are important in fighting infections. Cells from thyroid cancers can travel to lymph nodes in the neck and chest areas.
- M indicates whether the cancer has spread (metastasized) to other organs of the body. If there is distant metastases, M = 1, if the cancer has not spread outside of the neck region, M = 0.
Based on these three categories, the cancer is assigned a Stage of 1, 2, 3 or 4. Stage 1 is the least advanced form of cancer with the best prognosis, and Stage 4 is the most advanced category.
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