Liver Tumor Program

The Liver Tumor Program at Texas Children’s Cancer Center provides expert diagnosis and treatment of pediatric liver tumors within a state-of-the-art clinical setting.

We offer comprehensive multidisciplinary care to children with hepatoblastoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatic adenoma, sarcoma of the liver and vascular malformations of the liver.

The Liver Tumor Program is comprised of expert pediatric oncologists, liver surgeons, pathologists, interventional radiologists, pharmacologists and geneticists in order to provide optimal care to our patients.

Pediatric liver cancer affects approximately 200 children each year in the United States. We see a large portion of these patients with liver tumors ranging from the more common to the extremely rare, making us one of the largest liver tumor clinics in the nation.

The Liver Tumor Program is part of the Solid Tumor Programs at Texas Children's Cancer Center.

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Treatment and Evaluation

Our multidisciplinary team of physicians meets regularly to establish the optimal treatment plan for each individual liver tumor patient. Treatment options are limited if the tumor cannot be completely removed with surgery. Although chemotherapy can be used, it often has limited efficacy and is associated with significant short and long term side effects.

If a liver transplant is the best course of action, our world-renowned pediatric liver transplant team is immediately available. We are one of the few pediatric liver tumor centers in the country to offer transplantation within the same facility.

We also offer advanced interventional radiology techniques such as radiofrequency ablation (RFA) to treat liver lesions, a procedure common for adult patients but new in pediatrics.

Cutting-Edge Transarterial Radioembolization

In partnership with a team of physician-scientists at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital is using a new treatment option for pediatric patients with liver tumors, called Transarterial Radioembolization (TARE).

Using a targeted approach, this treatment delivers a high dose of radiation directly to the tumor via the blood vessel supplying the tumor, thereby sparing neighboring, healthy liver tissue. Because TARE is used on the tumor directly, it is much better tolerated than chemotherapy and can be done in a single visit in an outpatient setting.

The procedure has been available for many years in adult liver cancer patients, and now the treatment is available for children. Very few centers in the country offer this treatment option exclusively at a pediatric facility. The Liver Tumor Program at Texas Children’s is the only center in the southwestern United States currently offering TARE to treat pediatric liver cancers.

Learn More about TARE Treatment for Liver Tumors