‘30-40% Indians have fatty livers’

INDORE: Have a fatty liver? If yes, you seriously need to make some lifestyle and dietary changes without any delay. Doctors say liver-related diseases list among the top three most common causes of deaths in India. And if detected early, over half of those patients can be saved with the help of advanced medical techniques.
“More than 30-40% people in India have fatty livers that make them vulnerable to liver cancer and other serious disorders.Number of cases being diagnosed with liver cancer has also increased in the last ten years. Patients with liver cirrhosis are more susceptible to liver cancer.
Alcohol, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and fatty liver disease; all contribute to liver cirrhosis,” said visiting hepatologist from Bangalore, Dr Kaiser Raja.
“Obese and diabetics are also likely to suffer from liver cirrhosis and liver cancer if they did not check their sedentary lifestyle,” he added.
Dr Raja said patients with cirrhosis do not show much symptoms and the threat can be detected only through regular ultrasound scan of the liver, which must be done once every six months. Detection of Hepatitis B and C at an early stage followed by proper treatment also prevent chances of liver cancer. Dr Raja urged people in risk zones to undergo blood tests for Hepatitis at least once in their lifetime. Liver transplant surgeon, Dr Sonal Asthana said, “In India, every year 20,000 liver transplants are required. But only 1,500 get done due to lack of organ donors. Organ donation is common in South India with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka leading the way.”
Interventional radiologist and oncologist, Dr MC Uthappa said, “Surgical removal is not possible for more than two-thirds of primary liver cancer patients and 90 per cent of patients with secondary liver cancer. In treating liver cancer patients, interventional radiologists can attack the tumour from inside the body without medicating or affecting other parts of the body.”