Diseases of the liver and biliary tract

This category covers diseases of the liver and biliary tract with symptoms, causes, diagnostics, treatment options, and prevention basics.

Diseases Of The Liver And Biliary Tract brings together curated guides, checklists, and explanations to help navigate the topic with clarity.

Use this page as a starting point: learn key terms, common scenarios, and how clinicians usually approach diagnosis and treatment.

On this page:

  • Conditions grouped by specialty with clear navigation
  • Symptoms, causes, risk factors, and complications
  • Diagnosis pathways, including tests and imaging
  • Evidence-based treatment options and prevention

Medical information is educational; treatment should be individualized.

Use the links to learn what to ask at an appointment and how to prepare.

Are liver cirrhosis and liver cancer the same thing? How are they different and related?

No, cirrhosis and liver cancer are not the same disease. Cirrhosis is a chronic, scar-like transformation of the liver: normal tissue is gradually replaced by fibrous tissue, impairing blood flow and liver function. Liver cancer is a malignant tumor composed of cells that have acquired the ability to reproduce uncontrollably, invade surrounding tissue, and sometimes metastasize.

Liver-heart failure: what it is, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment

"Hepatic heart failure" is not a single, standardized diagnosis. It's typically used to describe the close relationship between heart and liver diseases: heart failure can damage the liver due to venous congestion or poor blood supply, while severe chronic liver disease, especially cirrhosis, can in turn impair heart function.

Liver melanoma: what it means, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis

In most cases, the term "liver melanoma" refers not to primary liver cancer, but to metastases from melanoma that arose elsewhere in the body. The source may be melanoma of the skin, mucous membrane, or eye.

Liver endometriosis: symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, surgery, and prognosis

Endometriosis is generally common: the World Health Organization estimates its incidence at approximately ten percent among women of reproductive age, which equates to approximately 190 million people worldwide.

Gallstones in Men: Symptoms, Risks, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Gallstones are the formation of hard deposits in the gallbladder, cystic duct, common bile duct, or intrahepatic bile ducts.

What to do if you have gallstones: symptoms, treatment, surgery, and nutrition

Gallstones are a condition in which hard deposits of bile components form in the gallbladder, cystic duct, or common bile duct.

Colic due to gallstones: symptoms, treatment, and help

Gallstone colic is an attack of intense pain that occurs when a stone temporarily blocks the flow of bile from the gallbladder or bile ducts.

Gallstone attack: symptoms, help, and treatment

Gallstones are the formation of stones in the gallbladder or bile ducts. Most stones remain asymptomatic for a long time.

Gallstone prevention: nutrition, weight, physical activity, and gallbladder protection

Preventing gallstones isn't a single product, a "liver cleanse," or a course of herbs. It's about reducing the factors that make bile oversaturated with cholesterol, impair gallbladder emptying, and increase the likelihood of bile crystallization.

Clinical guidelines for cholelithiasis: diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of complications

Gallstone disease, or cholelithiasis, is the formation of stones in the gallbladder, common bile duct, or intrahepatic bile ducts.