Liver Hemangioma in Adults

Due to certain unknown or non-specific causes, there occurs a development of a mass in the liver. This mass is non cancerous and is a made up of a tangle of poorly formed blood vessels. This very mass is what is known as liver hemangioma. Other names for this benign mass are "hepatic hemangioma" or "cavernous hemangioma". Fortunately, there have been no cases about any evidence which can show that this condition of the liver may lead to liver cancer.

Symptoms

Due to the presence of the mass in the liver, the sufferer often has a feeling of fullness even after eating a small amount of food, which normally, would not satiate a healthy person. Liver hemangioma pain is another symptom which seems to arise in the upper right abdomen. Due to the fullness, the patient would lack appetite and may also experience nausea or vomiting. Such liver hemangioma symptoms, when appear stubborn or persistent, must be reported to the doctor.

Causes

No specific causes of liver hemangioma have been identified yet. Most experts are with the opinion that a person may have it from birth. Usually, most liver hemangioma are found to be of the size of 5 cm wide, and occur as single mass. However, they can be larger than this and may also occur in multiples.

I have also mentioned that most cases do not show any kind of symptoms because the mass stops growing in size. However, people who do suffer from symptoms, may have a growing liver hemangioma, which is causing complication and does require treatment. And the causes of all these occurrences have not been brought under the light of certainty.

Treatment

In cases wherein the mass remains small and never grow thus, not giving rise to any kind of signs and symptoms, patients do not require medical attention. However, going for regular follow ups offer peace of mind, because it helps in ruling out the possibility of any growth in the mass.

Liver hemangioma requires treatment when it exhibits symptoms as described above. The symptoms may be a clear indication of the growth of the mass, which may progress so much that it may push adjacent structures in the abdomen, causing discomfort. The treatment depends upon the nature of the ailment which include the size of the mass, its location, number and overall health of the sufferer.

So, the options which form of a part of the treatment procedure include surgery to get rid of the liver hemangioma itself or to remove a section of the liver along with the mass. Surgeons may also choose not to remove the live hemangioma or a part of the liver. This may be done by taking up certain procedures which may help to cut down the blood supply through the main artery to the mass. Without blood, the mass may stop growing or shrink thus, relieving the symptoms.

Another procedure which is the liver transplant surgery is for those who have a liver hemangioma so large that it cannot be treated with the above methods. However, such a situation is very rare. One more option is to make use of radiation therapy. Using this, the cells of the growing mass may be damaged in order to stop the growth and settle the symptoms.