Lesions on my liver

Treated with interferon in 2005. Treatment successful. Still clear for the next five years that I know of.  Recently experiencing alot of pain in the area around my liver, lower back, hips.  I took a bad fall three weeks ago.  Thought all of this was from the fall.  Thursday I could not breathe or sit upright.  Went to emergency room.  Bottom line doctor say see your liver specialist asap and everything that you are feeling is associated with the liver.  I found five lesions on your liver.  Nov 09 mri radiologist said possible mass follow up with another mri.  Some kind of bile duct problem.  Told the doctor will keep an eye on it.  March have another test, again everything is okay except the duct has its issues.  Thursday cat scan told I have lesions. and all pain, naseiusness related to liver problem.

Has anyone had a problem with lesions on their liver.  I am making myself sick over this.  Makes me feel bad that I haven't posted in a long time.  Lesson learned, never forget where you came from.  Thanks everyone.  

[HectorSF]

Hi.I hope some of this information will be helpful...

Although I have no personal experience with bile duct problems and liver lesions I did have a friend who had cancer of her bile duct. Since both of these issues can potentially be very serious I would want an exact diagnosis of what is causing the pain and nausea. And what should and can be done to prevent the pain and nausea you are suffering with. Verses the information you have now. "five lesions on your liver" "possible mass" "Some kind of bile duct problem".  

Once you have a name for it then you can learn about it and take appropriate steps to getting it resolved.

Should you find out that it is a noncancerous liver lesion, this is an excellent reference doc regarding such lesions.
http://www.cpmc.org/advanced/liver/patients/topics/noncancerous_lesions.pdf

Bile Duct diseases:

Bile ducts are tiny passages that carry bile from the liver or from the gall bladder. As the liver produces bile, it is carried by bile ducts to the gall bladder, and eventually, when the bile is required for digestion of food, it is released into the intestine. Problems with the bile duct are usually the result of a blockage, and this in turn is most often due to gallstones or cancer. The main symptom of a problem with the bile duct is jaundice  – instead of the bile reaching the intestine, it accumulates, leading to an increase of bilirubin in the blood. Bilirubin is the main component of bile, and is what gives the yellow tinge that is associated with jaundice.

When bilirubin levels in the blood become very high, it causes the skin, the eyes, and other mucus membranes in the body to take on a yellowish tinge. Often, the urine also takes on a darker color, while the stools become lighter and more yellow in color. Another symptom of bile duct problems and jaundice is severe itching, as a result of the build up of bilirubin in the tissues.

Some bile duct problems are relatively mild, although they may cause more unpleasant symptoms. Gallstones can be quite painful, but there are plenty of treatment options, and the problem can usually be treated quite successfully. Gallstone pain tends to occur after a high fat meal, when the gall bladder is trying to release bile into the intestine for digestion. The pain is usually felt in the upper abdominal region, and may also be felt in the back, between the shoulder blades. In spite of the severity and disruptiveness of this pain, gallstones are a relatively minor problem affecting the bile ducts.

Bile Duct Problems

A more dangerous problem is pancreatic cancer – like any other cancer, treatment needs to begin early in order to be successful. However, the condition unfortunately tends to cause no symptoms in the early stages. In a large number of cases, the cancer is only detected when it obstructs the common bile duct, leading to jaundice. Treatment typically involves surgery, or if necessary, radiation therapy or chemotherapy; however, the survival rate of patients with pancreatic cancer is quite low.

In rare cases, cancer can directly affect the bile ducts themselves, leading to the same symptoms of jaundice, along with weight loss and abdominal pain. This type of cancer also tends to be lethal, and must be detected as early as possible for there to be any chance of treatment.

Best of luck to you!

Hectorsf

[Bill1954]

Hi shrodil,

Congratulations for successfully completing the HCV therapy; but now you’re dealing with a new challenge, huh?

Can I ask what stage liver disease you had when you were diagnosed with HCV? Were you cirrhotic?

If not, primary liver cancer is pretty rare outside of that. One thing to consider and discuss with the doctor would be ‘hemangiomas’, or blood tumors. These are normally benign, and not uncommon. Normally, it’s my understanding that they don’t usually require any medical intervention unless they interfere with the biliary tract or cause pain; sounds like your dealing with both.

AFP (alpha-feto protein tests can be used to monitor for HCC (primary liver cancer) as well; I assume this is your chief worry at this point? The AFP test is a simple blood test that can be used to screen for liver cancer; you might ask the doc to order it.

I’m a little confused with time frames in your post; was the last CAT scan performed last Thursday? And if so, have you had a follow up the doc to discuss the results? Maybe I’m missing the obvious; it certainly wouldn’t be the first time for me.

Bill

[HectorSF]

Hi.I hope some of this information will be helpful...

Although I have no personal experience with bile duct problems and liver lesions I did have a friend who had cancer of her bile duct. Since both of these issues can potentially be very serious I would want an exact diagnosis of what is causing the pain and nausea. And what should and can be done to prevent the pain and nausea you are suffering with. Verses the information you have now. "five lesions on your liver" "possible mass" "Some kind of bile duct problem".  

Once you have a name for it then you can learn about it and take appropriate steps to getting it resolved.

Should you find out that it is a noncancerous liver lesion, this is an excellent reference doc regarding such lesions.
http://www.cpmc.org/advanced/liver/patients/topics/noncancerous_lesions.pdf

Bile Duct diseases:

Bile ducts are tiny passages that carry bile from the liver or from the gall bladder. As the liver produces bile, it is carried by bile ducts to the gall bladder, and eventually, when the bile is required for digestion of food, it is released into the intestine. Problems with the bile duct are usually the result of a blockage, and this in turn is most often due to gallstones or cancer. The main symptom of a problem with the bile duct is jaundice  – instead of the bile reaching the intestine, it accumulates, leading to an increase of bilirubin in the blood. Bilirubin is the main component of bile, and is what gives the yellow tinge that is associated with jaundice.

When bilirubin levels in the blood become very high, it causes the skin, the eyes, and other mucus membranes in the body to take on a yellowish tinge. Often, the urine also takes on a darker color, while the stools become lighter and more yellow in color. Another symptom of bile duct problems and jaundice is severe itching, as a result of the build up of bilirubin in the tissues.

Some bile duct problems are relatively mild, although they may cause more unpleasant symptoms. Gallstones can be quite painful, but there are plenty of treatment options, and the problem can usually be treated quite successfully. Gallstone pain tends to occur after a high fat meal, when the gall bladder is trying to release bile into the intestine for digestion. The pain is usually felt in the upper abdominal region, and may also be felt in the back, between the shoulder blades. In spite of the severity and disruptiveness of this pain, gallstones are a relatively minor problem affecting the bile ducts.

Bile Duct Problems

A more dangerous problem is pancreatic cancer – like any other cancer, treatment needs to begin early in order to be successful. However, the condition unfortunately tends to cause no symptoms in the early stages. In a large number of cases, the cancer is only detected when it obstructs the common bile duct, leading to jaundice. Treatment typically involves surgery, or if necessary, radiation therapy or chemotherapy; however, the survival rate of patients with pancreatic cancer is quite low.

In rare cases, cancer can directly affect the bile ducts themselves, leading to the same symptoms of jaundice, along with weight loss and abdominal pain. This type of cancer also tends to be lethal, and must be detected as early as possible for there to be any chance of treatment.

Best of luck to you!

Hectorsf

[IAmTheWalrus]

As Bill points out, primary liver cancer (HCC) is pretty rare outside the settings of HCV and/or cirrhosis.

I would second his comment about many lesions not being HCC and usually being benign. I had a tumor that was detected and conformed by imaging with CT scans and MRI imaging. Six different specialists (hepatologists, radiologist and surgeons) all diagnosed HCC from the imaging. They even sent the scans to a specialist in SF for an opinion. All agreed that it looked like HCC. In the end, it was not. They discovered that it was a hemangioma on explant pathological examination (after they removed my liver in a transplant operation).

Even the best doctors can be fooled by these lesions that show up on imaging. The real gold standard for confirmation of malignancy is a tissue biopsy, but that procedure comes with risks beyond the normal risks of any liver tissue biopsy in that, if the lesion is malignant, it can be spread to other parts of the liver and elswhere from the biiopsy process (tract seeding, it is called). For this reason, a diagnosis is sometimes made based on imaging alone. Tissue biopsy that is negative doesn't necessarily rule out cancer, but a positive biopsy will certainly confirm that that is what you are dealing with.

I wish you the best luck and an HCC - Free diagnosis of your problems.