Hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most prevalent form of liver cancer,and the fifth most common cancer in the world. HCC is most prevalent in geographic regions with a high rate of hepatitis B virus (HBV), which causes liver cancer as its disrupts the normal genetic material in liver cells, thereby often causing the liver cells to become cancerous. Other factors that may contribute to the increase in liver cancer include heavy alcohol consumption, fatty liver disease, obesity, diabetes mellitus and iron storage diseases.

As HCC symptoms do not display before an advanced disease stage the disease is diagnosed very late and is often fatal. Currently it affects approximately 700.000 people, of whom 85% live in the Asia-Pacific region. In the United States the incidence of liver cancer has tripled between 1975 and 2005 and researchers believe that these trends may be partially due to an increase in chronic Hepatitis infections. Almost every patient dies within one year after the onset of the disease.