A SYMPTOM of liver cancer could show up while you’re washing the dishes or carrying the shopping inside the house.
The disease kills almost 6,000 Brits each year.
An enlarged liver can stimulate nerves that connect to nerves in the shoulder
Shoulder pain on the right hand side or in the back can be a symptom.
This is because the enlarged organ stimulates nerves that connect to nerves in the shoulder, according to Cancer Research UK.
It would be easy to brush off shoulder pain as a simple ache after doing a lot of housework – such as the washing up or vacuuming.
But it’s important to be alert to the potential dangers as liver cancer can be tricky to spot.
Symptoms often don’t occur at all in the early stages, and once they do, it’s vital to act fast.
More frequently, people with the condition experience heartburn, bloating, nausea and vomiting, according to the NHS.
Feeling full after eating small meals is also reported.
The NHS says the easy-to-ignore signs include:
Unexplained weight lossLoss of appetiteFeeling very full after eating, even if the meal was smallFeeling sick and vomitingPain or swelling in your abdomen (tummy)Jaundice (yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes)Itchy skinFeeling very tired and weak
Having these symptoms doesn’t mean you definitely have liver cancer; they are more likely to be the result of a more common condition, such as an infection.
But if you suffer from these symptoms for more than two weeks, it’s worth seeing your GP.
Around 6,200 people are diagnosed and 5,800 die with cancer that begins in the liver each year in the UK.
It is the second largest organ in the body after your skin and sits just below your right lung.
Liver cancer begins when abnormal cells start to divide and grow in an uncontrolled way.
The exact cause of this is still unknown, but most cases are associated with damage and scarring of the liver known as cirrhosis.
Cirrhosis can have a number of different causes, including drinking excessive amounts of alcohol over many years and having a long-term hepatitis B or hepatitis C viral infection.
It’s also thought obesity and an unhealthy diet can increase the risk of liver cancer because this can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.