What serious liver diseases can result from chronic hepatitis B?
Although chronic hepatitis B doesn’t always lead to fatal liver disease, the risk is much greater than normal. Studies show that 1 out of 4 chronic carriers may develop cirrhosis or liver cancer later in life. These diseases can result from liver damage that occurs over many years from the hepatitis B virus and can shorten your life. With cirrhosis, scar tissue is created as the liver tries to repair itself after constant attacks by the hepatitis B virus. This scar tissue makes the liver hard, which can cause liver failure. A healthy liver is soft and flexible. Hepatitis B and Liver Cancer Liver cancer is a very large health threat to Asians and can often be fatal since symptoms may not appear until it’s too late. Among Vietnamese-Americans, liver cancer is the second leading type of cancer. Liver cancer rates are 13 times higher for Vietnamese-American men, 8 times higher for Korean-American men, and 6 times higher for Chinese men than for non-Asian men. Since 80% of all liver cancer
