Liver function

Factsheet for professionals

Types of liver disease

There are several different categories of liver disease:

• Liver cancer
• Alcohol-related liver disease
• Infective damage, such as Hepatitis A, B, C, D and E
• Diseases of the bile ducts
• Fatty liver disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis
• Hereditary disorders, such as haemochromatosis.

Liver disease – a significant health issue

• Liver disease is estimated to affect 6% of the EU’s population (approx. 29 million people) and is reported to be the EU’s 5th biggest killer¹.
• Liver cancer is the 3rd most common cause of cancer-related death globally², causing 610,000 deaths per year³. Liver cancer is the leading cause of death amongst patients with liver cirrhosis⁴.
• It is estimated that over 10 million people in Europe are affected by Hepatitis¹.

600,000 die of the acute or chronic consequences of Hepatitis B every year⁵.

The World Health Organization estimates that there are about 4 million carriers of Hepatitis C in Europe alone⁶.

Coffee consumption and liver function

• Drinking moderate amounts of coffee may help to reduce the risk of liver cancer, and the risk of developing liver cancer falls as coffee consumption rises^7,8.

• Moderate coffee consumption may also be related to a slower progression of liver disease. Patients with a higher coffee consumption have been found to display a milder course of fibrosis, especially in alcoholic liver disease⁹.

• The association between moderate coffee consumption and a slower rate of fibrosis has also been seen in patients with hepatic fibrosis¹⁰, cirrhosis¹¹, non-alcoholic liver disease¹² and Hepatitis C¹³.

• It is not yet clear whether, and to what extent, caffeine may be responsible for the reduction in risk of developing these diseases.

• Several different coffee components are being investigated. Kahweol and cafestol, naturally-occurring compounds in coffee, are being studied for their anti-carcinogenic effects¹⁴, while the anti-viral properties of chlorogenic and caffeic acids are also under investigation¹⁵.