A groundbreaking new study has found that more than half of liver cancer cases could be preventable if people took action on three key health areas.
Experts say the potentially deadly illness could be prevented completely in three out of five cases by reducing obesity, cutting back on alcohol consumption and increasing the uptake of a vital vaccine.
The Lancet Commission report found that most cases were preventable if people took these steps as well as governments making sure nationwide levels of viral hepatitis B and C were reduced.
Health experts say by taking up the recommendations set out in the report released this week, they believe it could reduce the incidence of liver cancer cases by 2 percent to 5 percent each year by 2050.
In numbers this would mean saving the lives of between eight to 15 million lives around the world, and preventing between 9 million to 17 million new cases .
Professor Jian Zhou at Fudan University in China, one of the lead doctors working on the research, said: “Liver cancer is a growing health issue around the world. It is one of the most challenging cancers to treat, with five-year survival rates ranging from approximately 5 percent to 30 percent.
“We risk seeing close to a doubling of cases and deaths from liver cancer over the next quarter of a century without urgent action to reverse this trend.”
Among the commission’s recommendations include worldwide governments boosting HBV vaccination schedules while also implement universal screening for adults, as well as introducing minimum alcohol unit pricing and sugar taxes along with warning labels.
They also recommend investing in early detection of liver damage and cancer while improving palliative care for sufferers.
At present, liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer death around the globe.
Charity Liver Cancer UK state that in the UK, 17 people die every day from the illness with only three in 10 liver cancer cases diagnosed at an early stage.
The number of deaths is predicted to grow from 760,000 in 2022 to 1.37 million in 2050 should urgent measures not be put in place.
The thought behind the estimated rise in cases comes mostly due to population growth and ageing populations, with the largest increases expected in Africa.
At present, more than 40 percent of the global liver cancer cases occur in China due to its relatively high rates of hepatitis B infections.
Experts say one of the fastest growing causes of liver cancer globally is fatty liver disease, and this is expected to rise because of increasing rates of obesity.
Fatty lies disease can however be prevented by “eating a balanced diet, being physically active and potentially losing weight”, say the NHS.
Another author of the study, Professor Valérie Paradis of Beaujon hospital in France said: “There is an urgent need to raise awareness within society about the severity of the growing health issue of rising liver cancer cases.
“Compared with other cancers, liver cancer is very hard to treat but has more distinct risk factors, which help define specific prevention strategies. With joint and continuous efforts, we believe many liver cancer cases can be prevented, and both the survival and quality of patients with liver cancer will be considerably improved.”
