There are treatments for all children with liver cancer. Surgery may be used to take out the cancer and part of the liver where the cancer is found. Sometimes the entire liver may be surgically removed and replaced by a liver transplant from a donor. Surgery may also be used to remove cancer that may spread to other parts of the body such as to the tissues surrounding the liver, to the lungs, or to the brain.
Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill cancer cells.
Chemotherapy may be given to your child before surgery to help reduce the size of the liver cancer. Your child may be given chemotherapy after surgery to kill any remaining cells. Chemotherapy given after surgery when the doctor has removed the cancer is called adjuvant chemotherapy. Chemotherapy for childhood liver cancer is usually put into the body through a needle in a vein or artery. This type of chemotherapy is called a systemic treatment because the drug enters the bloodstream, travels through the body, and can kill cancer cells outside the liver.