Can anyone offer some advice/further guidance on a recent diagnosis…

[Missmc89]

Hi all,

I am new to the forum and just looking for some clarity from someone who has more of an understanding from their own experience.

After countless hours of googling trying to work out what’s going on with my mum’s recent diagnosis and worrying myself sick, I feel even more confused than ever.

Long story short, my mum (57) had a recent fibroscan and a follow up call from the doctor where she was told the doctor was concerned about her KPa score rising in the last 12 months from 9.1 to 17. On the back of this she has been referred to a liver specialist for another scan in February.

After having googled the liver stiffness score I’m really worried this is indicating she has developed cirrhosis from her previous diagnosis back in Dec 23 on the letter which states the diagnosis was hepatic steatosis, unclear cause with a score of 9.1. CAP 297

My mum doesn’t understand the results either and said the doctor didn’t confirm over the phone whether she now has cirrhosis or not based on that score.

what I don’t understand is how can a previous score of 9.1 be diagnosed as steatosis as looking at that Fib score chart the number indicates something more severe like fibrosis and also my mum was under the impression that she did have scarring on the liver from previous phone calls.

To make things even more confusing I requested a copy of her medical records from her GP and back in May 22 it says cirrhosis of liver under active problems, but then also states in Dec 23 steatosis of liver - how can that be if cirrhosis cannot be reversed and the stages can’t go backwards? Why would they now be diagnosing it as steatosis and not cirrhosis?

I am so confused.

Basically just need to know what stage she is at and the severity, and none of the recent diagnosis letters she has received have mentioned cirrhosis, I can’t find anything dating back before 2023.

Can anyone offer an opinion on this and whether I am misinterpreting things?

Thanks a lot

Nat

[Sunnyskies33]

Hi. As you noted, the Fibroscan has two scores...my understanding is that the kPa is the score for stiffness which suggests scarring at certain levels. The CAP score is for fatty change (steotosis). Cirrhosis can result from inflammation caused by the fatty liver over time. So a liver can be both fatty and have scarring. The scarring may eventually reach the cirrhosis level if not reversed. The specialist your mom sees may want to run more tests before diagnosing. Sometimes Fibroscans can overestimate the kPa if there is current inflammation for example. Perhaps notes in her file were based on other testing as well (blood tests, imaging, biopsy) ... that would be a question for her gp or specialist. I wish your mom and you all the best. The British Liver Trust has info on how to eat healthy for the liver, info on various tests and diagnosis. Your mom can also call their nurse helpline if she is in the UK. She'll definitely want to avoid anything harmful (like alcohol and added sugar) and eat foods that are helpful to the liver while awaiting her February appt. Can you call her gp with her to find out more?