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Journalism of Courage
Popular TV actor Dipika Kakar has revealed she is battling stage 2 liver cancer via an emotional post on instagram. She and her actor husband, Shoaib Ibrahim, have been documenting the diagnosis ever since she suffered intense stomach pain and doctors discovered a tumour “the size of a tennis ball” in her liver, which was later confirmed to be cancerous.
Stage 2 liver cancer manifests as either a single tumour larger than 2 cm that has invaded blood vessels or multiple tumors of less than 5 cm. The cancer hasn’t spread to lymph nodes or other parts of the body at this stage.
How serious is stage 2 liver cancer?
“In stage 2, the cancer hasn’t spread to lymph nodes or hasn’t multiplied to distant parts of the body. There are high chances of cure with surgery,” says Dr Sachin Trivedi, Director of Medical Oncology, HCG Cancer Centre, Mumbai.
He also says that post-surgery protocols are very important to contain future relapse or spread. “Post-surgery, you need to do genomic testing of surgically removed cancer tissue to examine the DNA, which can provide insights into the cancer’s behaviour, response to treatment, and potential recurrence risk. Accordingly a doctor can decide on a multimodal approach treatment, including targetted therapies, immunotherapy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Newer blood tests tell us if the cancer can spread to the bloodstream so that we can nip it in the bud,” he says.
What are triggers of liver tumours/cancers in young women?
Dr Minish Jain, Director of Medical Oncology, Ruby Hall, Pune, says that liver tumours in young women are being seen more often today than in the past. One major reason is the rising number of young people, especially women, developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). “This is often linked to obesity, poor diet, and a sedentary lifestyle. Since the liver regenerates and continues its normal functioning unless a complication is so big as to impair its functioning, NAFLD is undetected till it progresses to a more serious scarring and damage of liver tissue. This can lead to cancer,” he says.
Another reason tumours are often found at a more advanced stage is because liver-related symptoms—such as fatigue, stomach discomfort, or weight changes—are easy to overlook or misdiagnose in younger women.
Hormonal factors have also been associated with liver cancer. “Long-term use of birth control pills has been linked to benign liver tumours called hepatic adenomas, which can sometimes grow large or even turn cancerous. Autoimmune liver diseases like autoimmune hepatitis, which are more common in women, can cause ongoing liver inflammation and damage over time, increasing the risk of cancer. In some cases, young women may have been infected with hepatitis B or C earlier in life without knowing it. These viruses can stay in the body for years, slowly damaging the liver and leading to cancer in adulthood,” says Dr Jain.
Environmental factors, like eating food contaminated with aflatoxins (toxins from fungi), and the use of certain herbal supplements, may also damage the liver.
What about prevention?
Such cases show that each of us needs to assess the condition of our liver, find out if it is fatty, and not ignore it at all. “If you have known risk factors like family history, diabetes and obesity, have had hepatitis B and C, are a smoker or drinker, then do a liver function test, an ultrasound and fibroscan, every six to 12 months, depending on whether your readings are in range or not,” advises Dr Trivedi.
