A group of hepatologists, or doctors specializing in liver diseases, have urged the government to establish a national liver center to help patients and also serve as a training ground for more liver specialists.
Dr. Jennielyn Agcaoili-Conde, president of the Hepatology Society of the Philippines, stressed the importance of having a liver center as a venue for research and registry of liver-related diseases.
“Our statistics or registry will improve because until now, our registry of liver diseases is not good. So, I hope the establishment of that liver center will really give us a more updated incidence [or] prevalence of liver diseases,” she said.
According to Conde, future hepatologists can also be trained at the center as she noted that the country has less than 100 liver specialists, translating into a ratio of only one for every 100,000 Filipinos.
“Most of our hepatologists or hepatobillary surgeons or even transplant [specialists] are trained in other countries, and they would just come back,” she said. “That’s why [we’re] hoping for that liver center [to] also be a venue for our homegrown liver specialists.
She also called for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. to offer an expanded benefit package for patients with liver cancer, as she noted that the disease is now the fourth most common cancer in the country, and the third most common cause of death due to cancer.
“When a Filipino is diagnosed with liver cancer, it seems to be automatically equivalent to mortality. Why? We noticed that most of the patients with liver cancer do not feel anything. In the early stage, it is asymptomatic, It will only be felt when it has worsened.“
As a result, patients only consult a doctor when their ailment is already in an advanced stage and requires more expensive treatment which forces some families to sell property or take out a loan for the treatment.
“We do not lack science. What we lack is full system implementation and financial protection,” she said, as she called on the government to expand the financial protection for liver cancer patients and cover their expenses from diagnosis to treatment.
The Department of Health said the liver has very important functions as it helps break down the food in the stomach, processes the nutrients needed by the body, regulates blood clotting, and fights infections due to viruses, bacteria, and other poisonous and harmful sources.
To prevent the disease, the Hepatology Society of the Philippines recommended that people get vaccinated against Hepatitis B and avoid contracting Hepatitis C, or getting infected by people diagnosed with the disease. It also advised against smoking or drinking alcohol as it urged people to exercise regularly and maintain their weight.
The liver may not attract as much attention as the heart, but keeping it healthy is just as important. A national liver center will not only help patients deal with liver diseases, but also train the specialists that we need to address this particular health issue. It is something that Filipinos definitely need.*
