Our Approach and Expertise

Columbia Cancer’s Liver Cancer Program brings together the resources of Columbia University’s academic center, cutting-edge research, and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital’s comprehensive treatments in one location. Our program is known for providing:

  • A team of accomplished, caring specialists who have a long-standing commitment to cancer care. Your team will include oncologists, pathologists, hepatologists, surgeons, nurses, and nurse practitioners, all working together for you.
  • A multidisciplinary approach to your care, all in one place. You will have access to all the care you need for all of your health.
  • Personalized therapy based on your own genetic blueprint. We offer the newest targeted therapies that hone in on unique aspects of your cancer to stop it in its tracks.
  • Clinicians and researchers with a unique understanding of how liver cancers progress. Our team works together closely to bring discoveries made in our labs to the clinic, helping us to determine the best way to manage each specific type of liver cancer.
  • Access to full range of psychosocial and support services, including support for survivors and counseling.
  • A caring environment that treats you with warmth, integrity, and respect.

We care for hundreds of patients with these rare and challenging types of liver cancer each year. Our doctors are recognized as the world’s leading experts on liver cancer.

We offer the broadest range of treatments, including liver transplants, local therapy approaches, and national leadership in clinical trials for advanced disease. We are New York’s largest living donor liver transplant program, which means our patients are 10 times more likely to receive a liver transplant than other programs.

We are one of only a few centers in the country that offers liver transplantation for selected patients with bile duct cancers. For some patients, this procedure can offer an unprecedented chance for cure.

We Are Developing New Treatments for Liver and Bile Duct Cancer

Our program led the first international multicenter trial of a drug called bevacizumab in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which stops tumors from building new blood vessels. We were among the first to show, using imaging correlates, that the drug works in this way.

We were also part of the first multicenter clinical trial that for the first time set the correct dose of a drug called sorafenib in patients who had a liver transplant.

We are one of the few US cancer centers that offer liver transplants for some patients with bile duct cancer and HCC.

We are collaborating with our radiology colleagues on new ways to detect liver cancer and ways to predict how a patient will respond to a treatment so they don’t stay on ineffective therapies.

We’re Making Discoveries About Liver Cancer Biology

We discovered a new type of HCC called the steatohepatitic variant.

We’re looking into the molecular signatures of liver and bile duct cancer to find new treatments for certain subtypes. One discovery: People with higher body mass index may have more aggressive tumors. We’re researching the mechanisms and genetic targets behind these changes.

We have funding from the federal government, private foundations, and industry to find targets for new drugs that will work better than standard chemotherapy and with less toxicity.

We’re working to increase access to care for people with liver cancer, as well as access to liver transplants.