Liver Damage

Liver tissue can be damaged in the process of treating cancer and may result from:

• Chemotherapy drugs

  • Adriamycin

  • Methotrexate

  • 6 Mercaptopurine

  • Carboplatin

  • DTIC

  • BiCNU

  • L-Asparaginase

  • Pentostatin

• Radiation

• Infections

• Other drugs, antibiotics, etc.

• Bone marrow transplant

• Paraneoplastic Syndrome

• Liver metastasis

Signs and symptoms

Damage to the liver may be very mild and without any symptoms. This can only be detected on blood tests that represent the liver functions. In more severe cases of liver damage, patients may become jaundiced and develop other problems such as:

• Coagulation problems and bleeding

• Fatigue, weakness

• Confusion

• Coma

Diagnosis:

Patients who are at risk of developing liver damage from chemotherapy must be monitored with frequent blood tests in order to detect any liver damage at the earliest time. The causing agents have to be identified and omitted. In certain situations, a liver biopsy may be needed to establish the diagnosis.

Treatment:

Treatment depends on the cause of liver damage. The most important step is "omission of the drug or the cause of liver damage". It may take a few days or weeks before we see any evidence of liver recovery.