AtlasCancersLiver cancer

Liver cancer due to NASH

3Curable in someAI-generated

NASH liver cancer: curable early, but cases risingAI-generated

Burden-over-time charts — how many people this disease affects and whether that number is rising or falling — are coming to this page. The treatability read, milestones, and live trial pipeline below are current.

Milestones

dot size = significance
199020002010202020252005 — Sorafenib approved (FDA)2012 — Cabozantinib approved (FDA)2022 — Tremelimumab approved (FDA)2024 — Resmetirom approved (FDA)
2005: Drug approval — Sorafenib approved (FDA). 2012: Drug approval — Cabozantinib approved (FDA). 2022: Drug approval — Tremelimumab approved (FDA). 2024: Drug approval — Resmetirom approved (FDA)

What's being tested now

2002: 1 trials started2005: 2 trials started2006: 1 trials started2007: 1 trials started2008: 1 trials started2009: 3 trials started2011: 2 trials started2012: 1 trials started2013: 4 trials started2014: 5 trials started2015: 12 trials started2016: 6 trials started2017: 12 trials started2018: 23 trials started2019: 37 trials started2020: 49 trials started2021: 64 trials started2022: 103 trials started2023: 149 trials started2024: 264 trials started2025: 297 trials started2026: 239 trials started201020202026297

Trials started per year, stacked by phase (darker = later phase). Source: ClinicalTrials.gov via Clin2, which tracks studies recruiting in recent years — early years undercount.

See all 1205 active Fatty Liver trials on Clin2 →

Where we are

AI-generated

Liver cancer from NASH is curable in some patients, especially those diagnosed early and eligible for surgery, transplant, or local ablation. For advanced disease, approved drugs like sorafenib, cabozantinib, and tremelimumab extend survival but are not curative. Resmetirom treats NASH, not liver cancer. Deaths have been rising over recent decades, though newer therapies are improving outcomes.

Can NASH-related liver cancer be cured?
Yes, if caught early and treated with surgery, transplant, or ablation. Cure is unlikely once cancer spreads.
What treatments exist for advanced disease?
Approved systemic therapies—sorafenib, cabozantinib, tremelimumab—prolong life but are not curative.
Is resmetirom a treatment for liver cancer?
No. Resmetirom treats NASH itself, not liver cancer. It may reduce risk but is not a cancer therapy.
Are death rates from this cancer rising?
Yes, due to increasing NASH prevalence. However, newer drugs are starting to improve survival.
How many clinical trials are underway?
Over 1,200 trials are active, including 72 in phase 3, offering hope for better treatments.

Related

Burden estimates: IHME Global Burden of Disease Study. Drug indications: ChEMBL (CC BY-SA). Trial data: ClinicalTrials.gov via Clin2. Velocity, acceleration, and turning points are computed by Clin2 — how this page is made. Treatability describes what medicine can do, not what is available everywhere. This page describes populations, not people, and is not medical advice.