Cirrhosis
Cirrhosis, irreversible liver damage characterized by scarring, or fibrosis, and widespread formation of nodules in the liver. If left untreated, the liver becomes unable to carry out its functions, resulting in complications that affect many different systems of the body. Cirrhosis can result from virtually any chronic liver disease. When hepatocytes, the major liver cells, are damaged or die, they are replaced by scar tissue. Liver tissue may also regenerate in an abnormal pattern, forming tiny balls known as nodules. A number of inherited metabolic diseases can cause cirrhosis, such as hemochromatosis (abnormal accumulation of iron), Wilson’s disease (inability to metabolize copper), and some forms of alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency (inability to produce the alpha-1-antitrypsin protein). Cirrhosis can also result from certain autoimmune diseases in which the body’s immune system attacks and destroys liver tissue. In some parts of the world, parasitic infections are a common cause.