Gallstones are lumps composed mainly of cholesterol.
They can be caused by fatty diets and afflict 20 million people in the United States, where the condition leads to 800,000 hospitalizations a year. When gallstones are lodged in the duct leading from the gallbladder, they can trigger vomiting and cause pain in the abdomen and between the shoulder blades. The condition can also lead to inflammation of the gallbladder, the sac under the liver where bile is stored and concentrated. Bile aids in digestion, especially of fats. Cirrhosis is a chronic disease which damages the liver's tissue, which becomes unable to remove waste products from the blood.