Health experts have warned that "immediate action" is needed to tackle rising numbers of a disease that kills around 4,000 people in the UK each year - but is "almost entirely preventable".
Liver disease is any condition that impacts the ability of the liver to perform in a normal and healthy way. Your liver plays a number of crucial roles in your body, from filtering your blood to aiding digestion, removing toxins, and producing vital vitamins and minerals, so when it isn't working properly it can have a serious impact on your health - and cases of liver disease are growing.
Latest NHS data showed that hospital admissions where the primary diagnosis was liver disease increased by 22% in the financial year ending in 2022. There were a total of 82,290 admissions in 2022, compared to 67,458 in 2021 - following an increasing trend that has seen the number of people being hospitalised due to liver disease rise by almost 47% within the last decade, BirminghamLive reports.
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The disease is made all the more dangerous by the fact that someone with early liver disease is not likely to even be aware that they have the condition. The British Liver Trust explained that liver disease often exhibits "minimal to no symptoms" in its early stages, while three-quarters of people are diagnosed with cirrhosis, the most severe form of liver disease, when it is often too late for effective intervention or treatment.
Each year in the UK around 4,000 people die from cirrhosis, while another 700 people with the condition need a liver transplant to survive, according to the NHS. However, the condition is "almost entirely preventable" a leading charity has said.
With cases on the rise, the charity is calling for "immediate action" to address the increasing number of people in the UK developing liver disease. Vanessa Hebditch, director of policy at the British Liver Trust, said of the rising number of people being admitted to hospital with the condition: "These figures once again demonstrate how action is needed.
"The British Liver Trust is calling for a prompt and comprehensive review of adult liver services to address the huge variation and inequalities in liver disease treatment outcomes and care. The surge in hospital admissions emphasises the urgent need for immediate action to tackle the growing burden of liver disease on the NHS and society as a whole."
There are many different types of liver disease, with the three main causes of the condition being obesity, an undiagnosed hepatitis infection, and alcohol misuse. Most types of liver disease do not cause any symptoms in the early stages; once you start to get symptoms of liver disease, your liver is already damaged and scarred, the NHS explains.
The health service advises seeing a GP if you have symptoms of liver damage, known as cirrhosis. This can include:
- Feeling very tired and weak all the time
- Loss of appetite – which may lead to weight loss
- Loss of sex drive (libido)
- Yellow skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice)
- Itchy skin
- Feeling or being sick
You can reduce your risk of many types of liver disease with some simple lifestyle changes, such as trying to maintain a healthy weight and not drinking too much alcohol. You don't have to drink an excessive amount of alcohol to risk damaging your health - even regularly drinking just over the recommended levels can be harmful, the NHS warns.
Ms Hebditch added: "Addressing the root causes of liver disease, such as alcohol misuse and obesity, should be at the forefront of the Government's agenda. By allocating resources to education, raising awareness, and promoting healthier lifestyles, we can collectively work towards reducing the burden of liver disease and improving the well-being of individuals across the country."
