Liver Tumors & Cancer

Liver tumor care at UCSF Health

We provide highly specialized care for a range of liver tumors, including bile duct cancer and benign and malignant liver tumors.

Our pathologists exclusively examine liver biopsies. This high level of specialization enables us to make precise diagnoses. After we confirm a diagnosis, our oncologists, surgeons, interventional radiologists and gastrointestinal cancer specialists create a personalized treatment plan to support the best possible outcomes.

Your treatment plan may include a combination of nonsurgical and surgical treatments:

Active surveillance

Benign liver tumors don’t usually cause symptoms and are often found coincidentally on an imaging test. If you are not experiencing symptoms and your liver is functioning normally, you may not need treatment.

We may recommend monitoring the liver tumor over time with imaging tests.

Noninvasive and minimally invasive procedures

Our experts offer innovative procedures, including some that aren’t widely available, including:

Histotripsy

Our skilled interventional radiologists and surgical oncologists use high-frequency, focused ultrasound waves to destroy liver tumor cells.

You may be a candidate for histotripsy if you have liver tumors that are visible on an ultrasound. You and your provider decide if this treatment is right for you.

You receive general anesthesia, so your body stays still. However, since we don’t need to make an incision, recovery is typically quick.

Embolization and ablation for liver cancer

Our interventional radiologists offer several treatments for tumors that can’t be removed with surgery, particularly for primary liver cancer or liver metastases (cancer from another area that has spread to your liver).

Chemoembolization and radioembolization involve injecting chemotherapy medication or radioactive substances into your hepatic artery, which connects to your liver. These procedures also block the artery to deprive tumors of blood, so they stop growing or shrink.

UCSF Health is among a select group of institutions offering microwave ablation for inoperable liver cancer. This treatment uses a heated probe to destroy tumors.

Surgery for liver tumors

Hepatic artery infusion (HAI) pump for metastatic liver cancer

HAI pumps can treat cancer that has spread (metastasized) to the liver from another organ. We may also use it to treat liver tumors that can’t be easily removed with surgery. UCSF Health is one of the most experienced HAI programs on the West Coast.

During this procedure, your surgeon implants a pump under your skin and inserts a tube into your hepatic artery, a blood vessel that connects to your liver. The tube delivers chemotherapy medication directly to your liver.

Our team manages the pump and refills it with medication every few weeks. HAI pumps may:

• Slow liver tumor growth
• Improve survival
• Delay or prevent recurrence (cancer coming back)
• Shrink tumors so they can be removed surgically

Hepatectomy for benign and malignant liver tumors

Hepatectomy, or liver resection, removes the section of the liver containing the tumor. The remaining liver tissue can grow back (regenerate) and function normally.

There are several surgical approaches your surgeon may use for the hepatectomy, including traditional (open), robotic or laparoscopic. Your surgeon will discuss which is best for you.

We may use a hepatectomy to treat:

• Certain types of liver cancer
• Benign liver tumors that grow large enough to cause symptoms
• Liver metastases (cancer that has spread to the liver from other areas of the body)

Minimally invasive hepatectomy

To treat early-stage liver cancer, we use minimally invasive techniques that allow for smaller incisions. These procedures typically reduce your risk for complications, minimize scarring and shorten your recovery time.

Compared with open surgery, robot-assisted surgeries and laparoscopic surgeries allow you to start chemotherapy sooner. Typically, you can start chemotherapy three to four weeks after minimally invasive liver tumor surgery.

Follow-up liver care after liver tumor surgery

Depending on your health history and the complexity of your surgery, you may spend time recovering in our critical care unit. There, our team of critical care medicine specialists provides the advanced care you need to heal.

Medical and radiation oncology

We may pair surgery with several other therapies. This comprehensive approach helps us treat advanced liver cancer and tumors that may be difficult to remove with surgery.

Your oncologists may recommend:

• Radiation therapy. Targeted X-rays or other high-energy rays destroy cancer cells.
• Chemotherapy. Powerful medications treat cancer cells inside the liver and those that may have spread to other organs.
• Immunotherapy. This treatment enhances your immune system’s ability to fight cancer.
• Liver transplant. We remove the diseased section of the liver and replace it with part of a healthy donor liver.
• Clinical trials. Participants in clinical trials try new, innovative drugs and treatment combinations to prevent or slow the growth of cancer cells.