- What is the liver?
- My liver condition
This is probably the most important question in liver disease but it is not very easy to answer. To get a handle on this question, we need to look at three big factors:
How quickly is the liver being damaged?
How much damage has already been done?
Do I have liver cancer?
The liver can be damaged in several different ways:
Stress from fat - being overweight or use of too much alcohol
Damage by the immune system - hepatitis B and C, autoimmune hepatitis
Stress from storing too many things - iron or copper overload, alpha-1-antitrypsin
Damage from retaining too much bile acids - cholestatic liver diseases like PBC, PSC
Most liver conditions damage the liver slowly. It may take years or decades before enough damage is done to cause symptoms of liver disease. Some diseases can damage the liver very quickly. Some liver conditions are tricky in that they damage the liver slowly sometimes and quickly at other times. However, even slow damage is dangerous if the liver is already badly scarred and damaged. In general, if we can slow down or stop the ongoing liver damage, the liver has a chance to heal and get better.
Read on to learn more about tests of liver injury.