Because liver metastases spread to the liver from another part of the body, they can be very difficult to treat. But with the right approach, remission and even a cure are possible for some patients.

To build the most effective plan for you, our liver metastases experts carefully consider the latest surgical and interventional radiology techniques, including minimally invasive approaches that often can lessen pain and the time it takes to recover.

No two cancers are alike. To customize a treatment approach for you, we’ll want to learn about

• where in your body the primary cancer is located
• the size and number of liver metastases you have
• your general health

Overall, advances in surgical approaches and treatment strategies have improved the length and quality of life of people diagnosed with liver metastases. Treatment options we can consider include surgery, image-guided interventional therapies, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy.

Our goal is to provide treatment options that give you the very best possible quality of life and chance for survival. The advanced treatments for liver metastases at Memorial Sloan Kettering enable us to:

• use sophisticated imaging tests to target and shrink or eliminate liver tumors without surgery
• conduct genetic testing of tumors that gives us information about the molecular blueprint of your particular cancer. This insight allows your treatment team to predict which medicines, such as chemotherapy drugs, may be more effective for you.
• combine hepatic arterial chemotherapy (HAC) with surgery. This procedure allows us to deliver drugs directly to the liver through an abdominal pump. The approach has given many of our patients with liver metastases that started in the colon or rectum a chance at long-term survival and even a cure.