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Primary liver cell carcinoma; Tumor - liver; Liver cancer; Cancer - liver
Hepatocellular carcinoma is cancer of the liver.
Hepatocellular carcinoma accounts for 80 - 90% of all liver cancers. This type of cancer occurs more often in men than women. It is usually seen in people ages 50 - 60.
The disease is more common in parts of Africa and Asia than in North or South America and Europe.
Hepatocellular carcinoma is not the same as metastatic liver cancer, which starts in another organ (breast or colon) and spreads to the liver.
The cause of liver cancer is usually scarring of the liver (cirrhosis). Cirrhosis may be caused by:
Patients with hepatitis B or C are at risk for liver cancer, even if they do not have cirrhosis.
Kew MC. Hepatic tumors and cysts. In: Feldman M, Friedman LS, Sleisenger MH, eds. Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2006: chap 91.