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What are the symptoms?

If the tumours are small, secondary liver cancer may have no symptoms. As the cancer grows or spreads, a range of symptoms may occur. These may include:

  • weakness and tiredness (fatigue)
  • pain in the upper right side of the abdomen or right shoulder blade
  • severe pain in the abdomen
  • appetite loss and feeling sick (nausea)
  • unexplained weight loss
  • yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
  • dark urine (wee) and pale faeces (poo)
  • itchy skin
  • a swollen abdomen (ascites)
  • fever.

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Understanding Secondary Liver Cancer

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This information is reviewed by

This information was last reviewed June 2022 by the following expert content reviewers: Prof Desmond Yip, Clinical Director, Department of Medical Oncology, The Canberra Hospital, ACT; A/Prof Siddhartha Baxi, Radiation Oncologist and Medical Director, GenesisCare, Gold Coast, QLD; Prof Katherine Clark, Clinical Director of Palliative Care, NSLHD Supportive and Palliative Care Network, Northern Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal North Shore Hospital, NSW; Anne Dowling, Hepatoma Clinical Nurse Consultant and Liver Transplant Coordinator, Austin Health, VIC; A/Prof Koroush Haghighi, Liver, Pancreas and Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeon, Prince of Wales and St Vincent’s Hospitals, NSW; Karen Hall, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council SA; Dr Brett Knowles, Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary and General Surgeon, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and St Vincent’s Hospital, VIC; Lina Sharma, Consumer; A/Prof Simone Strasser, Hepatologist, AW Morrow Gastroenterology and Liver Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and The University of Sydney, NSW; David Thomas, Consumer.