How were you diagnosed with liver cancer please?

recnac_grl

Hello Survivors and Caretakers!
I was wondering if anyone would tell me their story about how you diagnosis came about? What alerted you to your having liver cancer? Was it elevated liver enzymes? Pain? Was it found "accidentally" via imaging for another reason? Does liver cancer "run" in your family, etc?
I would greatly appreciate it if anyone would share their diagnosis story ( and age) with me please? Thank you to all and my best wishes to everyone.

Take care,
Dottie

kohsin

I owe it to my wife
I am a Hep B carrier and I had recurring kidney stone coupke years ago. My wife demanded me to perform the routing ultra sound, and they found my 9 cm tumor, I had no symptom at that point. The tumor is removed with clean margin. This is 2 years ago. So far so good. My doc said if delayed for another 6 months and I would have missed the resection oppotunity. I am praying daily and I believe the God is still listening.

BRinger3583

kohsin said:

I owe it to my wife
I am a Hep B carrier and I had recurring kidney stone coupke years ago. My wife demanded me to perform the routing ultra sound, and they found my 9 cm tumor, I had no symptom at that point. The tumor is removed with clean margin. This is 2 years ago. So far so good. My doc said if delayed for another 6 months and I would have missed the resection oppotunity. I am praying daily and I believe the God is still listening.

No warning signs
My dad found out he had liver cancer by having shoulder pain. He started experiencing shoulder pain in January 2011 that gradually got worse. In February he went to a chiropractor, which didn't help. In March he started experiencing rapid weight loss and went to his Dr. for various tests. After many tests and several weeks later he was diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer which spread to all of his bones. He passed away August 12, 2011 at the age of 57. The only symptom he had before the shoulder pain was fatigue which started late summer/early fall 2010. I just don't understand how such a horrible and powerful cancer was not found earlier.

LeeandShirley

How were we diagnosed?
Dear Dottie,
My husband Lee has been dx with primary liver cancer, (Aug. 2010) (meaning it did not originate anywhere else in the body). He went for a yearly physical to our family doctor, (June 2010) who ordered a chest xray because Lee is a smoker. Lee was not feeling any symptoms to be concerned about. The chest xray showed a shadow, which the doc then ordered another test, an MRI, which cleared up any chest problem, but definitely showed a mass on his liver. After a CAT scan, it was confirmed again. We waited to see if it grew, and in 2 months it grew, so off to the surgeon we went and Lee had a liver resection (Sept. 2010). Let me say there was only one small tumor and no evidence of any other involvement, which is why he qualified for the liver resection. After surgery (and many complications after surgery), Lee was monitored every three months for any changes. After the second Cat scan, 6 months later, (May 2011) it was found that Lee had stage 4 metastatic liver cancer (uncureable), with all of his abdominal lymph glands involved and numerous tumors in his liver and a tumor on his pelvis. He began chemo therapy in May of 2011. He has been on Gemzar/Cisplatin chemo cocktail since then and still is as of Oct. 2011. He has also had radiation to the tumor(s) on his pelvis. His tumors have shrunk and we keep hoping for the chemo to keep working, because there is no other therapy that will be offered if it stops working. Lee never had cirrosis or hepatitis, no one in his family ever had cancer, (the family history is mostly heart disease, diabetes or stroke). The ONLY symptoms Lee ever had, was ulcers and a very touchy digestion. I am sure now that these were signs, but too vague for anyone to be sure he would get cancer. Lee is continuing to live WITH cancer, but he has had a noticable decline of his physical strength and stamina. I hope this senario will help you figure it out. According to his surgeon and oncologist, it's an unlucky draw. He has a rare cancer,(primary liver) and just got it , unknown reasons.