Cancer-Related Resources Informative and helpful resources on other Web sites for cancer patients and their caregivers 
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Primary liver cancer, or hepatocellular carcinoma, is the most common type of cancer originating in the liver itself. (Most tumors in the liver do not originate in the liver -- they start elsewhere in the body and spread, or metastasize, to the liver. For more information, visit the Liver Metastases section of our Web site.)
In the United States, primary liver cancer is comparatively rare -- there are 18,000 new cases diagnosed every year. Worldwide, hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common solid organ tumor. This is due to widespread viral hepatitis infection, one of the most common risk factors for primary liver cancer.
Most primary liver cancers originate in the liver's parenchymal cells -- the cells that perform most of the organ's blood-filtering functions. Other rarer forms of primary liver cancer include cholangiocarcinoma (tumors in the sections of the bile ducts within the liver); sarcomas and angiosarcomas (cancer in the connective tissue of the liver); hemangioendotheliomas (tumors that arise in the blood vessels of the liver); and hepatoblastomas (a highly curable form of liver cancer most often found in children).
Hepatocellular carcinoma occurs most commonly in people whose livers have been damaged. This damage may be caused by chronic infection of the hepatitis B or hepatitis C virus; by alcohol abuse; by metabolic or genetic diseases, such as hematomacrosis (a relatively uncommon genetic disorder, most often found in people of Irish descent); by environmental factors; or by physical conditions such as obesity or diabetes. Cancer can spread from the liver to other areas in the body by moving through the blood or the lymph system, most often spreading to the lungs, bones, and abdomen.
Avoiding exposure to hepatitis B and C is the best way to prevent liver cancer. A vaccination is available for hepatitis B and C. For more information, visit the Risk Factors or Prevention sections of this overview.Several benign, or noncancerous, tumors can form in the liver.
The most common form of benign tumor is called a hemangioma. Hemangiomas can occur anywhere in the body but occur most frequently in the skin and subcutaneous tissues (tissues beneath the skin). In nearly all cases, hemangiomas of the liver are harmless. In only rare instances do they cause pain or other problems. Once evaluated, and found to be harmless, these tumors can be left alone.
