Scared: liver has a coarsened echotexture

no comments? Nobody else has been through this or is able to identify with it? Isn't this a support group?

We are here. Your hepatologist will be able to shed some more light on your liver health. The liver is a very resilient organ and continues to function despite being damaged. I have cirrhosis and a previous liver cancer and my liver function is still pretty good very close to normal numbers. I am not sure but coarsened echotexture sounds like a measurement of the stiffness of your liver. Perhaps you can ask about the number or severity of this at your appointment.
Here is an article that explains this result generally. Your doctor will be able to tell you more. Wishing you the very best.
https://sciencehub.blog/coarse-liver-echotexture-causes-diagnosis

Hi, @coolchange. Hoping you saw the helpful and comforting response from @parrot53.

The unknown can be very scary, for sure. How did your appointment with the hepatologist go? What did you find out?

@coolchange, It was my primary care doctor who sent me to a gastroenterologist (GI) when he suspected something was not right with my liver. For me, it was the liver function lab numbers that concerned him. I was totally mpressed with the amount of knowledge about the liver that my GI knew, and he ran tests over a period of months until he was able to make a dignosis.
Now, I'm wondering about you and your current situation. I feel your fear and I hope that you have met with the liver spcialist by now. Did he/she have any information for you about the ultrasound findings? Will you be having any scans or tests in the future? Or is this a wait-and-watch course of treatment?

You’re not alone. It is a scary thing.

I’m in limbo also, after a long list of bloodwork and a liver biopsy, all the nurse practioner says is that I need another test, for which the wait time is months. Being in a position of trying to develop diagnostic likelihoods on your own…well, it isn’t fun. I would have expected more from the department at Mayo.

@trissa - Welcome to Connect where you will be able to learn from and share with other patients who have experience with liver disease.
As you begin your liver health journey, I want to share something that I was told early on my diagnosis/treatment - Everyone can experience different symptoms, even if patients have the same diagnosed liver disease. So, your healthcare team is going to always be your most accurate source of information about 'you' as you continue forward. (Even today, 16 years post transplant, my PCP adheres to whatever my transplant team recommends) And, patience is going to be a necessity, although not easy!

I remember when I was referred to specialist, that I had the same fear and desire for a diagnosis as you are experiencing. I wanted to read all that I could read about the possibilities. My favorite 'Go To' for reliable information, even before I was a patient there, is Mayo Clinic. Here is the link to Liver Disease where you can learn about Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, and Treatment:
- Liver Disease
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/liver-problems/symptoms-causes/syc-20374502
.
@trissa - During your pre appointment time, I would encourage you to begin to make a list of questions that you want to ask at your appointment. Are you currently experiencing any symptoms?

Thanks Rosemary. I understand that patience is needed…scheduling and tests can only happen so quickly even at Mayo (where my care is being handled).

I am disappointed that from what I can tell on my own, there’s a pretty finite set of potential diagnoses (3) for my labs & biopsy and despite asking my Mayo provider for help understanding the diagnosis *possibilities*, the answer was only that a MRCP was needed. I didn’t appreciate that this has left me in the position of relying on Google to learn what the MRCP is used to diagnose, what a negative might mean, what other diagnoses seem to still be on the table given how my labs are reading. Any data regarding what they’re looking for and what the *options* are at this point for diagnosis has been Internet-generated because they’ve left me in the dark. And my main point is that I agree with OP that it is scary.

Maybe they can’t talk about scenarios due to liability concerns. But I would have rather heard “We aren’t ever allowed/able to discuss diagnosis *scenarios*. We need a definitive diagnosis first,” rather than the platitudes to stay positive. There are answers to my questions, but they are not being shared. At a minimum, wouldn’t you think they could have provided lifestyle advice (diet & such)? Again…it’s all been from Dr. Google.

My next appointment will be with radiology for the MRCP and I don’t think it is reasonable to expect the radiologist to know these answers. And during my last conversation with the Nurse Practitioner (my only contact in the Transplant department), I did ask him. I understand the value of preparing questions in advance as you suggest…they’re just not being answered when asked.

I am entirely asymptomatic. The issue was found during routine annual labs and the advanced testing proceeded from there.

I appreciate this forum as well as your welcome and advice. Sorry I am not in a great state of mind right now.

@trissa, I am wondering whether you have already had your appointment with radiology for the MRCP?