A landmark study led by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in collaboration with mainland scholars has found that more than 60 percent of liver cancer cases are preventable.
The research underscores the critical need to enhance hepatitis vaccination, significantly reduce alcohol consumption, and actively manage obesity to curb the disease.
The university reported an alarming rise in liver cancer incidence worldwide, with projections indicating that annual new cases could nearly double from about 870,000 in 2022 to 1.52 million within the next 25 years.
Without effective intervention, annual deaths from the disease are also expected to surge from 760,000 to 1.37 million in the same period.
Stephen Chan Lam from CUHK's Department of Clinical Oncology highlighted a key regional disparity. Mainland China accounts for roughly 40 percent of the global liver cancer burden, with 60 percent of these cases linked to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections.
In contrast, fatty liver disease, often associated with obesity, has become the leading cause of liver cancer in Western nations.
This divergence, Chan noted, demonstrates the necessity for tailored clinical management strategies to improve patient outcomes in different populations.
The research also pointed to a significant challenge in early detection: the lack of pain receptors in the liver. This often means the cancer is not diagnosed until it is at an advanced stage, which drastically lowers cure rates.
Currently, the overall five-year relative survival rate for liver cancer remains below 30 percent.
To combat this, the university emphasizes the vital role of lifestyle modifications—including adopting a balanced diet and engaging in regular exercise—to prevent chronic liver diseases that can lead to cancer.
The study suggests that implementing these and other preventive measures globally could reduce new liver cancer cases by 2 to 5 percent each year. Such a concerted effort could potentially prevent up to 17 million new cases and 15 million related deaths by the year 2050.
