What are the symptoms on the face in the early stages of liver cancer?

Written by Yan Chun
Oncology
Updated on February 27, 2025
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In early-stage liver cancer patients, symptoms generally do not appear on their faces. This is because the tumors in early liver cancer are small, the lesions are localized, with shallow infiltration, no invasion of surrounding tissues or metastasis to distant organs, and thus, less damage to liver cells. Therefore, most cases do not show obvious symptoms clinically. Only when the lesions progress further do symptoms of disease dissemination appear in patients. These symptoms include persistent pain in the liver area, a significant decrease in appetite, fatigue, fever, and weight loss. Some patients may also experience symptoms of metastatic lesions, such as pain in bone metastases, headache, vomiting, hemiplegia, and aphasia in brain metastases, and cough, breathing difficulties, and chest pain in lung metastases.

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What should someone with advanced liver cancer eat if they have no appetite?

In the late stages of liver cancer, loss of appetite may be related to gastrointestinal dysfunction caused by widespread metastasis of cancer cells. If loss of appetite occurs, it is first recommended to try eating orally as much as possible, and consuming rice porridge or noodle soup to increase nutrition. If there is still no appetite, nutritional support can be provided through parenteral nutrition, such as using nutritional elements and substances for intravenous treatment. If the results are not satisfactory, medication can be administered through a central venous catheter for better outcomes.

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Symptoms of late-stage liver cancer deterioration

If liver cancer reaches an advanced stage, many symptoms will appear. For example, there will be pain in the liver area due to the tumor's growth pulling on the liver capsule, causing persistent swelling in the upper right part or stomach pain. If the tumor invades the pectoral muscles, it may cause referred pain in the right shoulder or back. Some patients may experience an enlarged liver due to the increased size of the tumor, which feels painful when pressed. Additionally, the increase and pressure from the tumor can obstruct bile excretion, leading to jaundice, and symptoms of cirrhosis may also appear. In general, the main symptoms of advanced liver cancer include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, and weight loss. If the condition worsens, metastatic symptoms may occur; lung metastasis can cause the patient to cough and expel phlegm, and bone metastasis can cause localized pain and lumps.

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Is primary liver cancer hereditary?

The occurrence of tumors is related to multiple factors including genetics, environment, and the lifestyle habits of the patient. Therefore, primary liver cancer does have a genetic component. If parents, siblings, grandparents, etc., have a history of liver cancer, the offspring of such patients might have a higher probability of developing liver cancer compared to the general population. However, it's not absolute, as it also depends on other factors like environment, personal dietary habits, lifestyle habits, whether one has hepatitis, alcoholic liver cirrhosis, and other similar factors. Thus, those with a family history of liver cancer are likely to have a higher risk of developing the condition and should be more vigilant about disease screening. Screening should be more frequent than for the general population, but this is not an absolute rule.

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Can an MRI detect liver cancer?

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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Does early-stage liver cancer cause itchy skin?

Liver cancer is one of the common malignant tumors in the digestive system. In the early stages of liver cancer, most patients do not exhibit symptoms of skin itching. It is only when the cancer progresses and causes obstructive jaundice that patients clinically develop symptoms of skin itching. Early-stage liver cancer patients typically do not show typical clinical symptoms, or they may not have any significant symptoms at all. This is because early-stage liver cancer lesions are small and localized, without external invasion or metastasis. Therefore, the impact on the entire body is minimal, and clinically it generally manifests as mild abdominal bloating, discomfort, nausea, diarrhea, and some patients may experience a dull ache or discomfort in the liver area. Because the symptoms of early-stage liver cancer are atypical, many patients are already in the middle to late stages by the time they seek medical attention, missing the opportunity for clinical cure.