Liver disease in numbers – key facts and statistics

Liver disease is the only major disease where death rates are rising

In the last 50 years, liver disease deaths in the UK have quadrupled. In contrast, deaths from other major diseases have fallen ²⁵.

Rising deaths are clear in more recent data too. Data from England shows that the number of people dying prematurely from liver disease and liver cancer has increased by almost two-thirds (64%) in the last 20 years ⁴.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its wider impacts may have compounded the issue. There was a 21% increase in deaths from liver disease in 2021 compared with 2019 ⁵.

This graph compares the death rate in each year back to what it was in 1970, for a range of major diseases ². Most major diseases have seen a reduction in death rates over that time – shown by the falling lines. Only liver disease shows an overall rise in death rates over this period, with death rates accelerating to 4 times higher than in 1970.

People with liver disease face stigma on a daily basis

Almost three quarters (73%) of people with a liver condition have experienced stigma ⁸. And almost a third (29%) feel stigma has stopped them receiving medical care. Read more about the results of our stigma survey.

9 out of 10 cases of liver disease could be prevented

Together alcohol, viral hepatitis, and overweight and obesity are the major causes of liver disease ⁹. Societal changes are essential to create an environment where healthy options are readily available to everyone and people are supported to make healthy changes to their daily lives.

Genetic and autoimmune disease, where the body is attacked by its own immune system, are the main non-preventable causes of liver disease.

Many of us are at risk of liver disease, particularly in relation to alcohol consumption and carrying excess bodyweight. Pre-pandemic estimates suggest:

• Around 1 in 5 (18 – 24%) people in the UK drink over the Chief Medical Officers’ low-risk guideline limit of 14 units per week ¹⁰. In England alone, 1.9 million people have reported drinking at harmful levels that could cause liver disease ¹¹.
• Almost two thirds (64%) of UK adults are overweight or obese ¹².
• The rise in obesity levels among primary school children from 2019-20 to 2020-21 is the highest annual increase (4.5%) since records began in 2007 ¹³.

Around 1 in 10 (9.1%) people receiving a free liver scan on our Love Your Liver roadshow have signs of possible liver damage ¹⁴. And 1 in 4 of them (2.5%) could already have advanced levels of liver scarring.

Liver cancer is the fastest rising cause of cancer death in the UK

Every year in the UK around 6,200 people die from liver cancer – that’s 17 people a day ¹⁹.

Having liver disease is one of the main risk factors for liver cancer.

• 80 to 90% of people with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have underlying cirrhosis ²¹.
• Around 30% of people with bile duct cancer have underlying liver disease ^{22, 23}.

Read more liver cancer statistics on our Liver Cancer UK website.

About these statistics

You are welcome to use these statistics in your own work, please credit the British Liver Trust.

Wherever possible we have included statistics about the UK as a whole. Data is collected differently across the UK nations, so in a few cases we have reported data for the specific nations where the information is publicly available.

If you are developing a media story about liver disease or liver cancer, we are happy to help you. You can find contact details for media enquiries on our press office page.