Liver Clinic (Hepatology)

• Alcohol-associated cirrhosis: Severe scarring of your liver due to long-term heavy drinking. Learn more about alcohol-associated cirrhosis.
• Alcohol-associated hepatitis: Inflammation of your liver related to alcohol consumption. Find out more about alcohol-associated hepatitis.
• Alcohol-associated steatotic liver disease: Fat buildup inside your liver caused by excessive drinking

• Autoimmune hepatitis: Inflammation caused when your immune system attacks your liver. Learn more about autoimmune hepatitis.
• Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC): Chronic and progressive inflammation and destruction of the small bile ducts inside the liver. The bile ducts carry fluid created by your liver (bile) to help digest fats.
• Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC): Chronic and progressive inflammation, scarring, and narrowing of your bile ducts. PSC may affect both the small bile ducts inside your liver and the larger bile ducts outside your liver.

• Cirrhosis of the liver: Permanent scarring and damage to your liver. Find out more about cirrhosis of the liver.
• Fibrosis of the liver: Scar tissue that builds up in your liver

• Alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency: Damage and inflammation due to low levels of a protein that protects your liver and lungs
• Hemochromatosis: Liver damage caused by too much iron in your body
• Wilson disease: Copper buildup in your liver caused by a gene change (mutation). Learn more about Wilson disease.

• Bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma): Cancer that starts in your bile ducts. Learn more about liver cancer types.
• Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), or hepatoma: Cancer that starts in your liver cells (hepatocytes)
• Noncancerous (benign) liver tumors

• Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH): Excess fat buildup in your liver with liver inflammation and scarring (fibrosis) that may progress to severe liver scarring (cirrhosis) if not treated. Find out more about metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
• MASH with cirrhosis: Cirrhosis due to MASH
• Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD): Excess fat buildup in your liver without progressive inflammation and fibrosis of the liver

• Drug-induced hepatitis: Liver inflammation and injury caused by medications. Learn more about drug-induced hepatitis.
• Hepatomegaly: An abnormally enlarged liver
• Other rare types of liver disease

• Hepatitis A: Liver infection caused by infected stool entering your mouth (fecal-oral transmission), such as through contaminated food or water. Get more information on hepatitis A.
• Hepatitis B: Liver infection caused by infected bodily fluids (blood, semen, or vaginal fluids), typically through sexual contact or exposure to an infected needle. Learn more about hepatitis B.
• Hepatitis C: Liver infection caused by contact with infected blood, typically from exposure to an infected needle. Find out more about hepatitis C.
• Hepatitis D: Liver infection that can occur only if you have hepatitis B. Learn more about hepatitis D.
• Hepatitis E: Liver infection caused by contaminated water or undercooked pork or wild game; most common in developing countries. Find out more about hepatitis E.

To prevent further liver damage, we may suggest lifestyle and behavioral changes such as:

• Exercise
• Healthy eating strategies
• Quitting smoking
• Reducing alcohol intake
• Vaccinations, such as against hepatitis
• Weight loss

Our doctors may recommend certain medications depending on the type and stage of liver disease. These medications may include:

• Anti-inflammatory medications to reduce liver inflammation
• Antiviral medications to treat viral hepatitis
• Corticosteroids and immunosuppressants to treat autoimmune liver diseases

We can use minimally invasive endoscopy to remove benign and early-stage cancerous liver tumors. During this procedure, we locate and treat the tumor using small incisions and a long, thin tube with a light, camera, and tools at the end (endoscope).

We may suggest minimally invasive interventional radiology procedures using imaging and small instruments to target the liver. The types of interventional radiology we offer include:

• Chemoembolization: We deliver a high dose of cancer-destroying drugs (chemotherapy) to a liver tumor using a tiny catheter and X-rays for guidance. Learn more about chemoembolization.
• Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS): We connect veins in your liver using a tube (stent) to reduce high blood pressure (portal hypertension) due to cirrhosis.
• Tumor ablation therapies: We target liver tumors with cold (cryoablation), heat (microwave ablation), or high-energy radio waves (radiofrequency ablation) while protecting the surrounding tissue. Find out more about tumor ablation therapies.

We perform surgery in partnership with the Stanford Liver Transplant Program and Bariatric and Metabolic Interdisciplinary Clinic (BMI Clinic). Types of surgery that we offer include:

• Bariatric surgery: We can remove fatty deposits from your liver to treat nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
• Liver transplant: We can replace your diseased liver with a healthy one to treat advanced stage liver failure or liver cancer.
• Partial liver resection (partial hepatectomy): We can remove part of your liver to treat a liver tumor.