What is liver cancer?

Primary liver cancer is a malignant tumour that started in the liver. When cancer starts in another area of the body and spreads to the liver, it is a secondary or metastatic cancer. Most liver cancer originates in other areas of the body and spreads to the liver through blood flow. The most common risk factor for liver cancer is long-term infections of hepatitis B or hepatitis C. Worldwide, approximately 56% of liver cancer is caused by hepatitis B and 20% by hepatitis C. Between 1991 and 2013, it is estimated that just under half of liver cancers diagnosed in Victoria have a corresponding hepatitus diagnosis (30% hepatitis C diagnoses and 17% hepatitis B diagnoses).

You can access further information about liver cancer, including risk factors, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment from Cancer Council Victoria. You can also call our trusted cancer nurses on 13 11 20 for support and to learn about our range of services for people affected by cancer.

The Victorian Cancer Registry also operates an interactive web portal, Data Explorer, which provides more trends and statistics than published here.

How common is liver cancer?

In 2023, 667 Victorians were diagnosed with liver cancer. Of these, there were 469 males and 198 females, representing 70.3% and 29.7% of the total Victorian liver cancer diagnoses, respectively. Currently, liver cancer is diagnosed at a rate of 11.8 per 100,000 males and 4.4 per 100,000 females. The median age at diagnosis of liver cancer is 67 years in males and 72 in females (Figure 1 & 2). Accounting for 1.7% of all cancers diagnosed and 3.6% of all cancer-related deaths in 2023, liver cancer was the 15th most commonly diagnosed cancer and the 6th most common cause of cancer-related deaths in Victoria.

Trends in liver cancer over time

Figure 3a shows for males between 2016 to 2023 the age standardised incidence rate of liver cancer declined by an average of 2.2% per year. However this result was not statistically significant, meaning the change cannot be confidently considered real and may be due to random fluctuations.

For females between 2015 to 2023 the age standardised incidence rate of liver cancer declined by an average of 0.6% per year. However this result wasn’t statistically significant, meaning the change cannot be confidently considered real and may be due to random fluctuations.

Liver cancer morphology

Figure 4 provides a summary of the different types of cells (morphology) which have caused liver cancer among all cases. In accordance with international diagnostic and management guidelines, the Victorian Cancer Registry classifies relevant clinical diagnoses as hepatocellular cancer even in the absence of histological confirmation. Most liver cancer tumours, 68.4%, present as hepatocellular carcinoma tumours.

Geographical variance in liver cancer by local government area

Figure 5 demonstrates variation in age-standardised incidence rates of liver cancer, by local government areas. Darker shading indicates areas with higher rates of liver cancer.

Liver cancer in people born overseas

Figure 6 shows the age standardised incidence rates of liver cancer in Australian-born Victorians compared to other major migrant groups, over the five-year period 2018 to 2022. The highest age standardised incidence rate of liver cancer in males of 25.2 was observed in those born in the South-East Asia region and lowest rate of 7.1 was observed in people born in the North America region. The highest age standardised incidence rate of liver cancer in females of 6.9 was observed in those born in the South-East Asia region and lowest rate of 3.2 was observed in people born in the Southern and Central Asia region.

Liver cancer five-year relative survival

Figure 7 shows the change in 5-year survival for liver cancer, and the 5-year survival trend for all cancers over the same time period. It demonstrates that five-year relative survival has increased for liver cancer between 1983-1987 and 2018-2022 from 6% to 27%.