The liver is a complex chemical factory that works 24 hours a day. Virtually all the blood returning from the intestinal tract to the heart passes through the liver. This means everything you swallow that is absorbed into the bloodstream passes through the liver. Your liver is a complex organ that is essential to life. You simply cannot live without it.
Liver disease affects people of all ages.
Today, one in every 12 Canadians suffers from some form of liver or biliary tract disease. There are over 100 known liver diseases. The most common ones such as gallstones, viral hepatitis, cirrhosis, cancer of the liver and some children's liver diseases as described below. Gallstones Gallstones form in the gallbladder when cholesterol or pigments crystallize out of bile. They can vary in size from as small as grains of sand to as large as golf balls.