Liver resection

Liver resection refers to the removal of the whole liver (which would be fatal in a living person) or one or more of its vascular segments. It is commonly done as a treatment for malignant tumors, such as hepatoma (liver cancer) or metastases from other cancers. Another indication is donation of a part of the liver for transplantation.

Procedure
A liver resection is usually performed under general anesthesia. An incision is made in the abdomen on the right side just below the rib cage. Then the veins, arteries and bile ducts are dissected from the section of liver that is to be removed. After that the segment is removed and the incision is closed.