When talking about cancer of the liver it is very important to be clear about the difference between primary and secondary cancer.

A primary cancer is one which starts in a particular part of the body, a secondary cancer is one which spreads to that part of the body from a cancer elsewhere.

In Britain the great majority of liver cancers are secondary due to the spread of cancer cells from elsewhere (metastases) such as the from breast cancer, bowel cancer, or lung cancer.  Primary liver cancers are quite uncommon, with less than 1,000 new cases each year, making up fewer than 1 in every 100 cancers diagnosed.

Worldwide, however, the picture is very different, with about a million new cases each year. Overall it has been estimated that primary liver cancer is the fourth commonest type of cancer. It is particularly common in parts of southern Africa and the Far East.