Why Does Liver Cancer Spread to Bones? When Does This Occur?

Cancer is currently the leading killer that poses a threat to human health. Every year, a large number of people die from cancer. Cancer has many types, and liver cancer is a very common type of cancer. Liver cancer is a malignant tumor, and its early symptoms are not very obvious and are easily ignored. Most patients with liver cancer are already in the middle or late stages when the cancer is discovered, and many of them have already developed bone metastasis, making treatment very difficult.

1. Why does liver cancer metastasize to bones? The earliest form of metastasis in liver cancer is hematogenous metastasis, which occurs through blood circulation and gradually infiltrates into bone metastasis. Bone metastasis of liver cancer most commonly occurs in the axial bones of the body, such as the spine and pelvis. Due to the slow blood flow and rich blood supply in the marrow of the axial bones, cancer cells are likely to stay here and form metastatic foci. In addition, liver cancer is a tumor with strong invasiveness, and cancer cells are easily adhered to the vascular wall to form cancer emboli within the blood vessels, leading to bone metastasis through the blood vessels. Once bone metastasis occurs in liver cancer, it is clinically staged as late-stage disease, with severe illness and poor prognosis.

2. When does liver cancer start to metastasize? Liver cancer can metastasize in the early, middle, and late stages. There is no specific timetable for metastasis in liver cancer patients, but as the disease progresses, the metastasis rate of liver cancer gradually increases. Most cases of liver cancer first undergo intrahepatic dissemination and then metastasize outside the liver. Metastasis mostly occurs in the late stages, but a small number of cases may also occur in the early stages.

3. Can liver cancer metastasize to other organs and tissues after bone metastasis? Yes, liver cancer can metastasize to other organs and tissues after bone metastasis. Bone metastasis in liver cancer is caused by the metastasis of cancer cells through the blood vessels, which is the main metastatic pathway of liver cancer. Bone metastasis indicates that the lesion of liver cancer has already disseminated. The lesion can also metastasize to multiple organs such as the lungs, brain, spleen, and adrenal glands through the blood vessels. Additionally, liver cancer can metastasize to the lymph nodes around the liver through lymphatic channels, such as the hepatic portal lymph nodes and distant lymph nodes, such as the supraclavicular lymph nodes.