Liver metastases

Liver metastases, also called secondary tumours of the liver, originate from non-hepatic tumour cells, but from cells from another organ (very frequently from colon or rectal tumours) which have subsequently migrated to the liver.

Symptoms
Liver metastases remain asymptomatic for a long time. The main symptoms found in the patient are:
•    pain in the upper part of the abdomen that can also reach the shoulder
•    fatigue
•    weight loss
•    lack of appetite
•    nausea or vomiting
•    jaundice
•    cachexia

Diagnosis
In order to pinpoint liver metastases in a precise way, it is still necessary to resort to diagnostic imaging.
Ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and positron emission tomography (PET) are all tests that allow us to understand where carcinomas are located, how large they are, and how many there are.
In some specific cases biopsy is used.
In those cases where patients are affected by primary tumours especially colorectal, stomach, oesophageal, pancreatic, kidney, lung, breast and skin it is good practice to periodically monitor the state of health of the liver to prevent the onset of a possible carcinoma.

Treatment
The treatment of liver metastases can be approached either surgically or with chemo or radiotherapy according to the specific case under consideration.
The surgical resection of the liver is the path that currently seems to bring the best results especially for metastases from colon or rectal tumours. Chemotherapy tends to reduce the size of metastases and is often used to make surgical procedures more feasible.
Many innovative therapies are currently available (biological drugs, immunotherapy, radio-embolization, stereotactic radiosurgery, etc.) that can help to control the disease in many patients.