For many years, around December, Mr. Nguyen Van Nam (65 years old, An Hoi Tay ward, Ho Chi Minh City) comes to the hospital for periodic health check-ups. Through examinations, he was diagnosed with hepatitis B and kidney stones. For kidney stones, he was prescribed treatment by a doctor, and hepatitis B is recommended for periodic monitoring, no need for medication. Feeling that his health is stable, Mr. Nam is not too worried.
However, on January 8, 2026, when going for examination at a nearby medical facility, he was suddenly diagnosed with a liver tumor of about 40 mm in size, and was indicated to be hospitalized for surgical intervention. “At that time, I was also half-believing, so I decided to go to Binh Dan Hospital for re-examination. After being hospitalized, having an MRI scan and doing necessary tests, the doctor concluded that I had liver cancer and needed surgery to remove the tumor. People with a history of hepatitis B like me have a very high risk of getting the disease,” Mr. Nam shared.
According to BS.CKII Huynh Van Trung, Deputy Head of the Department of Gastroenterology, Center for Endoscopy and Gastrointestinal Surgery, Tam Anh General Hospital HCMC, most liver cancer patients in Vietnam today are detected at a late stage. The main reason is that hepatitis B often progresses silently, patients still feel healthy even when they have cirrhosis or small tumors appear, leading to subjective psychology, not going for in-depth examinations.
There are many cases where the disease is only detected when it has become liver cancer. It is noteworthy that liver cirrhosis does not necessarily lead to liver cancer; some people without cirrhosis can still form tumors," said Dr. Trung. In addition, conventional ultrasound is difficult to detect tumors under 3 cm, so it is necessary to combine additional paraclinical tests and in-depth imaging diagnostic instruments such as CT and MRI for accurate diagnosis.
According to the Ministry of Health, hepatitis B is a common disease in Vietnam with about 6.5 million cases, and is also the leading cause of liver cancer. Globocan 2022 data shows that liver cancer has surpassed lung cancer, becoming the leading cancer in terms of deaths in Vietnam. Each year, the whole country records more than 24,500 new cases and more than 23,300 deaths, accounting for 19.4% of total cancer deaths.
According to Dr. Trung, at an early stage, the liver tumor is still small, not yet encroaching on blood vessels, liver sacs or adjacent organs, so it does not cause pain. Even during clinical examination, palpation is difficult to detect because the liver is deep under the right rib, especially in overweight people.
In addition, the initial manifestations of liver cancer are often very vague, such as fatigue, loss of appetite, bloating, weight loss, easily confused with common digestive disorders. For people with hepatitis B or C, these symptoms are even more difficult to distinguish, making the disease easily overlooked until the tumor grows large, compressing the gallbladder or liver sac, causing more obvious manifestations.
Detecting liver cancer at a late stage reduces treatment effectiveness, prolongs treatment time and increases costs. When the disease progresses, surgery becomes complicated, making it difficult to completely remove the tumor; supportive methods such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy or immunotherapy are also less effective.
Experts recommend that, to detect and prevent liver cancer early, people need periodic screening, especially high-risk groups such as people with hepatitis B, hepatitis C, drinking a lot of alcohol or having family history of liver disease.
Healthy people should check every 6 months, while people with cirrhosis or high risk need to check every 3 months.
