Liver Cyst

What Is a Liver Cyst?

A liver cyst is a roundish or saclike shape that grows on the liver. Sometimes it's empty, or sometimes it contains watery substances or mucous fluids.

A liver cyst may also contain fatty material in a patient with fatty liver disease. However, liver cysts themselves are not considered a form of liver disease because they don't compromise liver function.

Liver cysts are fairly common, and because they produce no symptoms, they're often discovered only by accident when a patient has an ultrasound scan or CAT scan of the abdomen for some other reason.

Simple liver cyst A simple liver cyst usually grows when a small area of liver cells die or degenerate. Advancing age and an unhealthy diet or lifestyle are the most common circumstances in which liver cysts occur.

It's generally easy to stop liver cysts from multiplying or growing. It's often possible, in fact, to shrink the liver cysts gradually through diet changes and other nutritional medicine therapies.

Treatment may be needed if the liver cyst grows large enough to cause liver pain. Such treatment might include drainage or removal of the cyst.

There's some evidence liver cysts may be present at birth in some individuals. Liver cysts may indicate a serious, underlying condition such as polycystic liver disease, echinococcus infection (see hydatid liver cyst, below), or liver cancer, but this is extremely rare.

Hydatid liver cyst A liver cyst can also form from a condition called Hydatid disease, which is caused by a parasite known as the Echinococcus granulosus worm. It's a tissue infection common in southern South America, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, central Asia, and Africa. Cases have also been reported in the United States in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.

Humans can get a hydatid liver cyst from eating eggs in contaminated food. Cysts can also form in the other parts of the body, but usually happen in the liver.

This type of liver cyst may not produce symptoms for many years, but sometimes it can be diagnosed through a physical exam.

Anyone who is exposed to cattle, sheep, pigs, or deer is at risk for contracting this a hydatid liver cyst. It can also come from exposure to the feces of dogs, wolves, or coyotes. 

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