The Penn State Health Approach to Liver Disease

As central Pennsylvania’s only university-affiliated health system, Penn State Health offers access to a wide variety of advanced therapies to treat the full spectrum of liver diseases. We’re the only comprehensive liver center in central Pennsylvania. Our team of liver specialists offers unparalleled expertise in all liver-related disorders, from gallbladder conditions to liver cancer.

Our highly trained experts are skilled in the latest surgical techniques and novel treatments, including live donor liver transplantation, specialty care for cirrhosis, and complex liver, bile duct and pancreas surgery. You get unmatched care and service from a dedicated, compassionate team.

We offer streamlined, patient-centered care and personalized treatments to give you the best quality of life possible.

Complete Care for a Full Range of Liver Diseases

We offer advanced expertise in diagnosing and treating all types of liver disease, including even the most complex conditions. You get the latest, most effective medical and surgical therapies from a highly skilled team that puts your health and well-being first.

Our liver specialists work as a team to provide convenient, streamlined care and attention in the same visit. We work together with you to develop a treatment plan that will give you the best results. We also offer assistance with psychological, nutritional, emotional and care coordination needs. We keep you well-informed and engaged in your care through our patient and family support group, living-donor transplant educational sessions and our liver symposium. We help you take control of your health.

Support Groups

Support groups provide an opportunity to share your feelings and connect with other patients and caregivers who are experiencing similar struggles.

Learn more about support groups offered

Experts in Care

Meet our doctors, view their profiles and select the one that’s right for you.

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Why Choose Penn State Health for Liver Disease Care

Families from across Pennsylvania choose us for leading-edge evaluation and treatment of the full range of liver diseases.

Nationally Recognized Liver Disease Care

Penn State Health offers the expertise, breadth of treatments and personal support you won’t find anywhere else nearby. These are just a few reasons why people choose us:

  • No other program in the area has the expertise of our team of more than 30 liver specialists. Penn State Health has the largest, most experienced transplant team in the region.
  • We’re the only comprehensive liver center in central Pennsylvania. That means you get the full spectrum of care, from diagnosis through treatment and beyond.
  • We’re the only adult living donor liver transplant center in central Pennsylvania and the area’s only United Network of Organ Sharing-certified program. We completed the area’s first live donor transplant in 2008.
  • You can get the most advanced treatment options, including minimally invasive liver surgery and a specialty clinic for Child A cirrhosis.

Expert, Team-Based Care Designed for You

We offer well-coordinated care from a team of experts. Your care team may include experts in liver disease (hepatology), transplant surgery, nutrition, social work and more.

Our liver experts also work closely with specialists in other areas of medicine, such as cancer [link to Cancer page], digestive diseases [link to Digestive Diseases page], radiology and imaging [link to Radiology and Imaging page] and more. You get a personalized treatment that’s designed just for you.

Liver Disease Research and Clinical Trials

As a regional leader in liver disease care, we’re dedicated to finding breakthroughs that offer people with liver disease better treatments and a higher quality of life. That means you can find therapies before they’re widely available through our clinical trials - including personalized medicine for liver tumors. Learn more about our clinical trials.

Related Services and Treatments

  • Cancer
  • Complex and minimally invasive hepatobiliary surgery
  • External beam radiation
  • Liver transplantation
  • Novel hepatitis C treatment
  • Portal vein embolization
  • Radioactive bead embolic therapy
  • Radiofrequency, microwave and alcohol ablation
  • Stereotactic body radiotherapy
  • Transarterial chemo embolization (TACE)
  • Transjugular intrahepatic porto-systemic shunt (TIPS)

Conditions Treated

  • Acute liver failure
  • Alcohol Induced Liver Disease
  • Alpha-1 Anti-trypsin Deficiency
  • Autoimmune liver disease
  • Bile duct cancer
  • Bile duct injuries
  • Biliary obstruction
  • Cancerous and noncancerous liver and biliary tumors
  • Child A cirrhosis
  • Chronic inflammatory liver disease
  • Cirrhosis and related complications
  • Gallbladder cancer
  • Hepatitis C (and other forms of hepatitis)
  • Hereditary Hemochromatosis
  • Inherited disorders of bilirubin metabolism
  • Liver cancer
  • Liver masses and cysts
  • Neuroendocrine tumors
  • Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
  • Portal hypertension
  • Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis
  • Primary Biliary Cholangitis
  • Rare liver tumors
  • Wilson Disease

Convenient Locations

Find the care your family needs, close to home, at one of our many locations throughout central Pennsylvania.

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