Liver cancer originates in the cells of the liver. It is one of the fastest-growing cancer types in the country. The most common form of liver cancer is called hepatocellular carcinoma, while less frequent types include hepatoblastoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. Research has shown that liver metastases are more common than cancer that commences in the liver cells. Read this article to learn about the symptoms, causes, treatments, and home remedies for liver cancer.

Causes
Often, liver cancer is an outcome of cirrhosis or liver scarring. One may experience liver cirrhosis because of liver diseases like fatty liver or hepatitis. Some ongoing treatments, lifestyle, and parallel conditions are also the causes of liver cancer . Studies suggest that 90 percent of liver cancers are seen in patients with liver disease. But liver cancer may also develop in people with healthy liver sans any underlying condition. In such cases, experts speculate the liver cells initiate mutations or defects in the DNA that trigger them to grow uncontrollably and form a tumor.

Risk factors
Beyond the above-discussed causes, some factors can aggravate one’s probability of developing liver cancer. These are as follows:

1. Chronic hepatitis B or C
2. Liver cirrhosis
3. Some inherited conditions like Wilson’s disease (a condition that causes copper poisoning) or hemochromatosis (iron buildup in the liver)
4. Diabetes
5. Being over 60
6. Having a fatty liver
7. Eating foods with aflatoxin (a fungus that grows on nuts and grains not stored properly)

Symptoms
Often, people do not experience any symptoms in the early stages. However, when the symptoms show, they may include the following:

1. Chalky or pale stools
2. Vomiting and nausea
3. Abdominal discomfort, tenderness, and pain, typically in the upper abdomen
4. Jaundice or the yellowing of the skin, the whites of the eye
5. Fatigue
6. Loss of appetite
7. Fever
8. Weakness
9. Bleeding or bruising easily
10. Feeling full unusually fast

Treatment options
The treatment option depends on:

1. Underlying liver function
2. The number and size of liver cancer tumors
3. Patient’s fitness level
4. Cancer’s spread

Some prevalent treatment options include:

1. Liver transplant – A surgery to remove the entire liver and replace it with a healthy liver, provided cancer has not spread to the other body parts.
2. Liver resection – A surgery to remove the affected liver part, primarily recommended in the early stages.
3. Tumor ablation – A treatment to destroy the cancer cells without removing them via heat.
4. Trans-arterial chemotherapy – This treatment option is used to kill the cancer cells, provided the liver is functioning.
5. Selective internal radiation therapy – It involves administering radioactive particles into the liver tumors through the artery to shrink the tumors.
6. Targeted therapy – It curtails the cancer from spreading or growing by reducing the blood flow to the cancer cells.

Natural remedies
Beyond the treatment options mentioned above, some home remedies can also help prevent or manage liver cancer and its symptoms. These are as follows:

Rice bran
Rice bran contains bioactive compounds, such as phytic acid, known for their anticancer properties. Studies suggest that rice bran can suppress the growth of HepG2 cancer cells and trigger apoptosis. Furthermore, pigmented rice varieties contain more beneficial compounds, making rice bran a promising remedy for managing liver cancer.

Soy
Soy has potent antioxidants like genistein and daidzein, which enable the soy to slow down the growth of unhealthy cells in the liver. Hence, people who include soy in their meals are less likely to develop liver cancer than those who do not.

Spices
Multiple spices can also lower the susceptibility of developing cancer cells. These are as follows:

Rosemary – It lowers oxidative stress and offers protection against aflatoxin B1, a potent carcinogen.

Basil – It declines DNA formation and curtails the sulfotransferase’s pro-carcinogenic effects.

Cinnamon – It aggravates the production of reactive oxygen species responsible for killing the apoptotic cancer cells.

Galangal – It can target and kill the diseased cells’ mitochondria.

Saffron – It helps reduce inflammatory responses, lower tumor burdens, decline oxidative damage, and help eliminate diseased cells.

Star anise – It reduces oxidative stress and alleviates the tumor burden.

Ginger – It diminishes liver cancer metastasis, slows the cancer cell formation, inhibits inflammation, and promotes apoptosis.

Pepper – It boosts apoptotic cell death, selectively targets cancer cells, and prevents the onset of liver carcinogenesis.

Turmeric – It curtails the growth of liver cancer, reduces oxidative stress and inflammation, guards against HBV-related liver cancer, and has anti-tumor properties.

Garlic – It supports normal cell functioning, a crucial aspect in fighting cancer. In addition, it also curtails cancer cells’ migration and invasion, promotes S-phase cell cycle arrest, restricts DNA damage, induces apoptosis, and inhibits preneoplastic lesions in the liver.