Health Awareness
Your Liver 2021
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Why taking early action can prevent liver damage from alcohol
You may only notice symptoms of alcohol-related liver damage when you are on the path to liver failure. Taking stock of your drinking can prevent serious self-inflicted harm. We don’t think enough about liver health, insists Dr Varuna Aluvihare, leading Hepatology Specialist. Yet we should because when a person’s liver fails, their whole body starts...
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Just an itch? Don’t PBC so sure
The symptoms of primary biliary cholangitis/cirrhosis (PBC) may not immediately make you think of liver disease – but early diagnosis could just save your life. You might think it’s just an itch, but if it happens regularly, seems to ‘move’ around your body and doesn’t come with a rash, you might want to get tested...
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Treating liver cancer by guiding immune cells to the right place
Paid for by University of Birmingham and NIHR Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre Hepatocellular cancer (HCC), the most common form of primary liver cancer, is a major global challenge. Cases around the world, including in the UK, are set to rise dramatically in the coming years.1 HCC is difficult to diagnose at an early stage because...
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Liver cancer and the unmet need for treatment
Liver cancer is often described as a silent killer, with few overt symptoms and diagnosis often only once the illness is at a relatively advanced stage, by which time there are fewer treatment options. There are around 6,100 new liver cancer cases in the UK every year, that’s 17 every day. There are around 5,600...
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NASH – the forgotten liver disease epidemic
For many people as soon as you say “liver disease” the first thing that they think about is alcohol. But there is another form of liver disease, related to obesity and type 2 diabetes. Non-alcohol related fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is when fat builds up in the liver. It usually occurs when people are overweight or obese. Type 2 diabetes is also...
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Protecting the next generation from liver cancer
Every day, babies are born around the world and become infected with the hepatitis B virus. It can happen during childbirth if the mother has hepatitis B and a high viral load. A ticking time bomb We need to stop this. We should be testing all pregnant women for hepatitis B and vaccinating all babies. If we did that,...
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Research is showing the way forward for liver disease
The human body is built to repair itself and the most astonishing example of this is the liver, which is the only solid organ to regenerate. New research is helping us better understand liver disease. The liver is an organ designed to meet the daily challenges of keeping us healthy. Yet increasingly, as is evident...
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PBC: health care begins with self-care
People with PBC can take an active role in their diagnosis and in managing their condition. Living with a progressive condition like primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) – which has no known cause or cure – takes some getting used to, says Collette Thain MBE. Collette set up the PBC Foundation specifically to support people like...
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How stigma can delay liver disease diagnosis
Reducing stigma associated with liver disease is crucial in helping tackle the condition, according to leading experts in the field. Stigma surrounding liver disease is hampering the fight against the condition. Experts in the field are concerned that patients are often hesitant in seeking help because of negative connotations associated with it. Professor Jeffrey Lazarus...
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Boost in fight against liver disease
A new non-invasive approach to identifying levels of liver fat could deliver an important boost in the fight against liver disease. Early diagnosis is key to helping combat liver disease. Changes in lifestyle can prevent the condition becoming serious and developing into NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease) or NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis). However, early monitoring of...
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It’s time to sound the alarm on late diagnosis of liver disease
Late diagnosis of liver disease is causing a crisis across the UK, denying many patients the chance of getting the best possible treatment. Evidence shows the earlier a patient is diagnosed, the greater their chance of survival. Three quarters of people are currently diagnosed with liver disease in an emergency setting and by this time it...
