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Tag Archives: hepatitis B liver cancer

Protecting Yourself From Liver Cancer While Living with Hepatitis B

This Liver Cancer Awareness Month, we are connecting the dots between hepatitis B and liver cancer. Hepatitis B is responsible for up to 60% of all liver cancer cases worldwide. In fact, some of the highest rates of liver cancer are found in places with extremely high rates of hepatitis B, such as sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. Although liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer in the world, it is the second most common cause of cancer deaths. Liver cancer prevention should be a priority for all living with hepatitis B. Luckily, there are steps that you can take to prevent liver cancer – whether you are living with hepatitis B or not! 

The Importance of Regular Check-Ups

Did you know that a chronic hepatitis B infection can lead to liver cancer without signs of previous damage such as cirrhosis?  Many people do not realize that chronic hepatitis B is the primary global risk factor for developing liver cancer. Cirrhosis – or scarring or the liver – is often a risk factor for liver cancer, but it is not always the case for those living with hepatitis B. This is one of the reasons why it is so important for family members and sexual partners of infected individuals to get tested as well! Lack of symptoms does not mean that damage is not occurring. 

Visiting a doctor regularly is the best way to prevent liver cancer if you are living with hepatitis B. The standard recommendation for visiting your doctor is every six months however this can vary based upon the severity of your infection. The doctor will take a few blood tests, along with an ultrasound examination of the abdominal area to determine the health of the liver. Based upon these tests and other risk factors, the doctor will be able to determine if liver damage is occurring and can guide you on which steps you should take next. 

If damage is detected early enough, progression to liver cancer can be prevented through highly effective treatments that stop or slow the virus from reproducing in your liver. However, it is important to note that not everyone living with hepatitis B needs treatment. Current treatments have been proven to be most effective when there are signs of active liver damage. Hepatitis B can be managed through regular monitoring by a knowledgeable doctor and lifestyle changes that can go a long way in protecting your body. 

Early detection of liver cancer is extremely important. The average 5-year survival rate once diagnosed with liver cancer ranges from 10% -14%. However, with early detection and proper treatment, those numbers rise to over 50%! This significant difference is because if liver cancer is caught early, a doctor can link you to life-saving treatments including chemotherapy, surgical options, ablation techniques, intra-arterial therapies or a liver transplant. Regular monitoring by a knowledgeable doctor will hopefully identify the markers of liver cancer before it occurs, but if you are living with liver cancer, there are treatment options and resources available to you. 

Preventing Liver Cancer 

Educating oneself is the first step in prevention! If you have hepatitis B, be aware of the risk factors and behaviors that can increase your likelihood of liver damage and liver cancer, such as consuming alcohol and high amounts of junk food, and lack of exercise. Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) can also increase your risk of cancer, so it is important to discuss NAFLD risk factors and prevention tips with your doctor. Groups such as the CDC Division of Viral Hepatitis and the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases all provide free fact sheets, call lines, and literature by experts that can help you understand what may be occurring in your body and to make educated choices. You can also check out our Liver Cancer Connect resource for more information or for liver cancer support. 

The hepatitis B vaccine is also the first anti-cancer vaccine ever created! Remember that the vaccine is typically given in a set of 3 doses. It is extremely important to take all three in order to receive lifelong protection from hepatitis B-related liver cancer. In the U.S., there is also a 2-dose vaccine available, so you can be fully protected with fewer doses! If you are worried about the cost of the birth dose for your infant or the vaccine for yourself, many countries have free health clinics that can administer it or link you to an organization that can help. 

Another key to preventing liver cancer is to get tested for hepatitis B. If you have not received your vaccine and you think you fall into a high-risk group, talk to your doctor about getting tested. Because hepatitis B often has no symptoms, it is important to get screened even if you do not feel ill. An early diagnosis means that you can begin any needed treatment sooner and prevent irreversible damage from occurring. Like the vaccines, your local doctor or health clinic may be able to test you for free or reduced cost – just ask! Some local community groups also provide free hepatitis B testing, so be sure to look out for flyers and announcements about them in your community as well

Journey to the Cure: What Does Liver Cancer Research Look Like? ft. Aejaz Sayeed, PhD

Welcome to “Journey to the Cure.” This is a web series that chronicles the progress at the Hepatitis B Foundation and Baruch S. Blumberg Institute towards finding the cure for hepatitis B.

In the fourth episode (part 2), Kristine Alarcon, MPH sits down with Aejaz Sayeed, PhD, Assistant Professor at the Baruch S. Blumberg Institute, to talk about his research in liver cancer. For any questions about hepatitis B, please email info@hepb.org.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this audio post is not intended to serve as medical advice of endorsement of any product. The Hepatitis B Foundation strongly recommends each person discuss this information and their questions with a qualified health care provider.

Edited by:
Kristine Alarcon, MPH

Special thanks:
Samantha Young

Music:
Modern – iMovie Library Collection

Script:

Welcome to “Journey to the Cure!” Every month, we’ll sit down with scientists from the Hepatitis B Foundationand the Baruch S. Blumberg Instituteto talk to you about hepatitis B and efforts to find a cure for hepatitis B. There’s still a long way to go, but we’re here to walk you through our journey.

Kristine Alarcon, MPH:
Can you tell me about your research?

Aejaz Sayeed, PhD:
That’s an interesting question. I’vespent a lot of time pursuing breast cancer and prostate cancer. I just started working on the liver cancer. There are millions of people who are pursuing cancer research, but the challenge is that we have done a lot of progress in some cancers, but some cancers, still, we do not have a handle on. For example, we have done a lot of progress in breast and prostate cancer. We have not done much in pancreatic and liver cancer. And, the five-year survival rates of breast and prostate and other cancers have drastically increased, but we have not done much of a progress in pancreatic or a specific form of brain cancer or pancreatic cancer or liver cancer. The problem, again, is that we’re not able to detect the disease at an early stage, and if we had a good set of biomarkers available, there’s a good opportunity, there’s a good chance that we should be able to control these diseases as well.

Kristine Alarcon, MPH:
What attracted you to studying liver cancer?

Aejaz Sayeed, PhD:
I’ve been working on breast cancer and prostate cancer, so in liver cancer, I want to use the tools and techniques, which I used in breast and prostate cancer. That’s why there’s that desire to use the similar strategies, which I used in breast and prostate cancer to discover and characterize markers. That’s why I’m still setting up collaborations with transplant surgeons because liver cancer is treated generally by either resecting the tumor or transplanting the liver. The liver is such an important organ that you cannot really take the liver away. You need the liver. Transplanting the liver is another strategy of treating these patients, so, yes, it is basically that desire that we have more biomarkers, and I can use the knowledge that I gained in breast and prostate to recapitulate the same kind of events, so that we can make a dent.

Kristine Alarcon, MPH:
Yeah; that’s so cool.

Aejaz Sayeed, PhD:
Thank you.

Kristine Alarcon, MPH:
Well, thank you for joining us on this episode of “Journey to the Cure.” Please join us next time for our next episode. Thank you for joining us!

Aejaz Sayeed, PhD:
Thank you!