Can an MRI detect liver cancer?

Written by Shen Jiang Chao
Radiology
Updated on September 05, 2024
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Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect liver cancer. MRI has a high resolution for soft tissues and can multi-dimensionally present the water content and fat content in liver cancer, producing specific signals. MRI can clearly show the size, signal, shape, and the surrounding tissues of liver cancer. It can even detect small liver cancers as tiny as three millimeters and is a preferred method of imaging, more precise than CT.

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Oncology
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Is the right shoulder pain from liver cancer persistent?

For patients with liver cancer, if there is pain in the right shoulder, it is not necessarily continuous, which depends on the specific cause of the right shoulder pain. If the pain is caused by bone metastasis of liver cancer to the right shoulder, the pain is often severe and persistent. Bone is one of the more common sites of metastasis for liver cancer. For bone metastases of liver cancer, we can use imaging studies to detect clear bone destruction at the metastatic sites on X-rays, CT scans, and MRI. If the right shoulder pain in liver cancer patients is caused by other benign conditions, the pain may not necessarily be persistent. For instance, liver cancer patients may also experience shoulder pain due to other conditions such as rotator cuff injuries, periarthritis, or minor trauma, but this pain is not necessarily continuous.

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Written by Yan Chun
Oncology
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Does early-stage liver cancer cause yellowing of the skin?

In the early stages of liver cancer, generally, the skin does not turn yellow. This is because jaundice, which causes the skin to yellow, occurs in liver cancer patients due to the presence of jaundice. The causes of jaundice in liver cancer patients mainly consider two aspects. The first reason is due to the lesions of liver cancer, which damage liver cells and cause liver function damage, thereby causing jaundice. Another reason is due to significant liver lesions that compress the bile ducts and intrahepatic bile ducts, causing obstructive jaundice. Therefore, the appearance of jaundice is often a clinical manifestation of late-stage liver cancer. In the early stages of liver cancer, the lesions are generally small, causing only mild damage to liver function. Moreover, in most cases, it does not cause compression or obstruction in the biliary system, thus not leading to obstructive jaundice. Therefore, yellowing of the skin does not occur in the early stages.

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Written by Yan Chun
Oncology
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Early-stage liver cancer: how to exercise daily

Patients with early-stage liver cancer can engage in light and low-intensity exercises daily, such as slow walking and strolling. This is because early-stage liver cancer patients generally have an acceptable physical condition, although most of them have low immunity. Doing some appropriate exercises can enhance the patients’ immune system and has minimal impact on their overall physical condition. Moreover, patients with early-stage liver cancer usually undergo curative surgery for treatment. In most cases, post-surgery, they do not require radiation, chemotherapy, or targeted therapy for tumor treatment. With close follow-up, as long as there is no recurrence or metastasis, most patients can achieve clinical cure. Early exercise is beneficial for the recovery of patients, thus it is recommended. In addition, for patients with early-stage liver cancer, close follow-up of the disease changes after curative surgery is crucial to provide timely treatment.

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Written by Yan Chun
Oncology
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Will people with early-stage liver cancer experience weight loss?

Patients with early-stage liver cancer generally do not experience weight loss; weight loss is more commonly a clinical manifestation in patients with late-stage liver cancer. The reason for weight loss in liver cancer patients is due to the damage caused by cancerous tissue to liver function, leading to reduced synthesis of albumin. Furthermore, patients with liver cancer often experience a significant decrease in food intake, resulting in insufficient intake of nutrients such as albumin. Additionally, the progression of liver cancer tumors requires the consumption of a large amount of the body's albumin. Therefore, due to these factors, many patients with late-stage liver cancer exhibit clinical manifestations of weight loss. Moreover, besides not experiencing weight loss, patients with early-stage liver cancer also do not typically present with typical clinical symptoms. Many patients are asymptomatic, and as the lesion progresses, the cancer spreads, possibly leading to clinical manifestations associated with tumor spread. For example, pain in the liver area, a significant decrease in food intake, fatigue, fever, pain, and some patients may also exhibit symptoms of metastasis such as headaches, vomiting, abdominal pain, and abdominal distension.

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Written by Liu Liang
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What to do if vomiting occurs in liver cancer?

Liver cancer is divided into two main pathological types, the first being hepatocellular carcinoma, which is the most common, and the other being cholangiocellular carcinoma. Clinically, vomiting is also a common symptom of liver cancer. For symptomatic treatment, we can provide gastric protection and administer antiemetic drugs such as stomach comfort, but these are only symptomatic treatments and do not cure the root cause. The key is still to treat the liver cancer itself, as the symptoms will only alleviate once the cancer is under control. For advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, targeted therapies like sorafenib are available. If it is cholangiocellular carcinoma, and symptoms like vomiting and jaundice appear, which may be obstructive symptoms, then a surgical procedure in hepato-biliary surgery to drain the bile can be performed, which can also alleviate the symptoms of vomiting. (Medications should be used under the guidance of a doctor.)