Liver concerns after tests

[Debs365]

Hello everyone,

I’ve been on here for a while a bit worried to post but here goes...

I was a heavy drinker for around 14 years before I met my partner and even after still way above recommended.

I have worried about my liver which started around 6 months ago when I developed intense itching on my inner forearms, this went on a few months until I saw GP who said maybe eczema/dry skin gave me a cream which helps occasionally but I still itch. I told them then about my liver worry and she ran a LFT and it came back normal.

Fast forward a couple months I began to have some discomfort under my lower right ribs and have had digestive issues for a while. Sent for ultrasound to check for gallstones after which the scanner said no gallstone at which point I asked is my liver ok? And she said yes liver is fine.

I took this as good news but I keep reading about those who had clear ultrasound and still had liver disease, and my main unexplained worry are the itchy arms not typical of eczema as no circle rash etc just gets dry/shiny when I scratch it. And I feel dog tired all the time!

I know I have anxiety about this which doesn’t help but I am petrified as I have a daughter (7months) and I’m so scared something is wrong with my liver.

What would be the best course for me to check for sure? ELF blood test or another type of scan? I am going to do this privately as I’m sure my GP thinks I am mad but I just need to know and get to the bottom of constant itching.

Thank you for reading and for this forum which has been a great support to me.

DebsM

[Peter_Plymouth]

Hi Debs,

I’m pleased you decided to join the forum. We are not able to give medical advice, more support and guidance on our own experiences. I’d suggest your next port of call is the lovely nurses provided by the Liver Trust - they are experienced with all liver issues and just talking to them might help you and also suggest what you should do next.

britishlivertrust.org.uk/in...

They are available 10am to 3pm weekdays.

I hope you find out what is going on and find out if you need to worry or not - likely not given your LFT’s are ok but a chat to the nurses will give you far better information than I can provide.

Good luck with your journey and if you want to ask anything specific feel free to PM me and I’m happy to share my experiences - I’m now 2 years post transplant so have been on a fairly challenging journey but still here to tell the tail.

I know it’s a platitude but try not to worry until there is something identifiable to worry about - best wishes - Peter

[Hidden in reply to Peter_Plymouth]

Thank you Peter🙏

The nurse team would be happy to speak with you Debs.

[Onesmallstep1969]

The enhanced liver fibrosis test (ELF) or biopsy will give you a pretty good idea of whether you have cirrhosis. Fibroscan on the other hand works well for some people and not so well for others , depends on a lot of factors.