Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
A liver health checklist for Telugu families | CION Cancer Clinics
Every adult in the family should know whether they carry hepatitis B or C, whether a scan has shown fatty liver or scarring, and how much alcohol they really drink. Those answers decide who needs nothing more, who needs a vaccine and who needs regular scans. This checklist walks through each one, with the key words in Telugu so you can explain them to parents at home. At CION Cancer Clinics, we explain costs in writing and help families from across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh plan treatment in Hyderabad.
NG
Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed October 2026, next review due October 2027
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On this page
- What should a Telugu family check about their liver health?
- Which Telugu words will help explain this at home?
- What should each person in the family check?
- What do we do with the answers?
- What do elders at home often say about the liver?
- What this page cannot tell you
- Common questions about liver health in Telugu families
The short answer
What should a Telugu family check about their liver health?
Every adult in the family should know three things: whether they carry hepatitis B or C, whether a scan has ever shown fatty liver or scarring, and how much alcohol they really drink. Those three answers decide who needs nothing more, who needs a vaccine, and who needs regular scans.
Who this checklist is for
It is written for the son, daughter or spouse who reads English and looks after the family's health papers. The key words appear in Telugu beside their English meaning, so you can explain them to parents or grandparents at home. A full Telugu version of this page is being prepared separately.
What this checklist is not
It is about keeping a healthy liver healthy and finding trouble early. It does not diagnose anything. If someone in the family has already been told there is a lump or "gaanth" in the liver, go straight to a liver lesion explained for Telugu families and see a doctor about the report.
A liver problem is nobody's fault. Hepatitis B often passes within a family without anyone knowing.Words to share
Which Telugu words will help explain this at home?
- కాలేయం (kaaleyam)
- The liver. It cleans the blood, stores energy and makes proteins. It rarely causes pain until damage is advanced.
- కామెర్లు (kaamerlu)
- Jaundice: yellow eyes or skin. It always needs a doctor, and with fever it needs hospital the same day.
- హెపటైటిస్ బి (hepatitis B)
- A virus that can live in the liver for years without symptoms. It can be controlled with tablets, and the family can be vaccinated.
- కొవ్వు కాలేయం (kovvu kaaleyam)
- Fatty liver. Common, often mild, sometimes leading to scarring.
- సిరోసిస్ (cirrhosis)
- Hard scarring of the liver after long damage. People with cirrhosis need regular scans.
- టీకా (teeka)
- Vaccine. The hepatitis B vaccine protects anyone who is not already infected.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistThe checklist
What should each person in the family check?
Go through this list once for every adult at home. Write the answers in one notebook or phone note.
Blood tests
- Hepatitis B test done, and the result kept
- Hepatitis C test done, at least once in adult life
- Liver function test if a doctor has asked for one
- Sugar test, because diabetes affects the liver
Vaccine
- Children: hepatitis B vaccine in the immunisation card
- Adults who test negative and are not protected: ask about the vaccine
- Spouse and household of a carrier: tested and vaccinated if needed
Habits
- Honest answer to how much alcohol is drunk each week
- Tobacco, in any form, stopped or being stopped
- Waist size and weight checked, not just weight
- Groundnuts and grain stored dry, mouldy ones thrown away
Medicines and tonics
- A list of every tablet, powder and tonic taken
- That list shown to the doctor at each visit
- No new liver "detox" started without asking first
!
Signs that need hospital today
Go to hospital the same day if anyone with liver disease vomits blood or passes black, tarry stools, becomes newly confused or unusually drowsy, or has fever or belly pain with a swollen, fluid-filled abdomen. Sudden yellow eyes with fever also needs hospital today. Do not wait to see whether it settles, and do not give home remedies first.
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After the checklist
What do we do with the answers?
Everything is clear
Hepatitis tests negative and vaccinated, no fatty liver, little or no alcohol. Keep healthy habits and repeat only what your doctor suggests.
Someone carries hepatitis B
They need a physician or hepatologist to decide on tablets, and the family needs testing. Read about surveillance for hepatitis B carriers.
A scan showed fatty liver
Ask whether there is scarring. A FibroScan or a blood score helps. The fatty liver guide for Telugu families explains the next steps.
Someone has cirrhosis
They need a liver ultrasound, often with an AFP blood test, about every six months, without missing one. See a six-monthly plan for Telugu families.
Heard at home
What do elders at home often say about the liver?
"Liver patients must stop eating dal, eggs and fish."
Most people with liver disease need enough protein to keep their strength. Cutting it out can make them weaker. Change the diet only on a doctor's or dietitian's advice.
"Hepatitis B spreads by sharing food and plates."
It does not. It spreads through blood, from mother to baby at birth, and through sex. Eating together, hugging and sharing a home with a carrier are safe.
"Jaundice is best treated at home with special food."
Jaundice is a sign, not an illness on its own. It can come from a virus, a blocked bile duct, a medicine or liver damage, and each needs a different answer. A doctor should always see it.
"He feels strong, so his liver must be fine."
A damaged liver often gives no symptoms for years. Blood tests and scans find problems long before a person feels unwell.
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
A checklist cannot read a report. If a blood test or scan has already shown something unusual, the person needs a doctor who can see the full report, ask questions and examine them. Nothing here tells you whether a finding is or is not cancer.
It cannot replace the doctor for hepatitis B
Whether a carrier needs tablets, and how often they need blood tests, depends on results only a physician or hepatologist can interpret. Hepatitis B is controlled, not removed, so the tablets usually continue for a long time.
Who this does not apply to
If someone already has liver cancer, or cancer that has spread to the liver from elsewhere, this checklist is the wrong starting point. Their care team will set the tests and scans. A family guide in Telugu explains how to support them.
CION arranges scans and tests through accredited diagnostic partners, and its doctors review the results with you.Questions we are asked
Common questions about liver health in Telugu families
Which single test matters most for our family?
The hepatitis B blood test. It is simple, and a positive result changes what the person and the whole family should do. A negative result tells you whether the vaccine is needed. Add a hepatitis C test once in adult life if it has never been done.
My mother has hepatitis B. Is it because of something she did?
No. Most people with hepatitis B in this region caught it as a baby or a small child, long before they could do anything about it. It is not a sign of bad behaviour. What matters now is her care and testing the rest of the family.
Does everyone in the family need a liver scan?
No. Healthy people with negative hepatitis tests and no liver disease are not usually advised to have regular scans. Regular ultrasound is for people with cirrhosis and some hepatitis B carriers. Your doctor will tell you who falls into that group.
Is fatty liver on an ultrasound report serious?
Often it is mild and improves with weight loss, activity and less alcohol and sugar. Sometimes it leads to scarring. Ask your doctor whether there is any scarring, because that decides whether you need follow-up scans.
How do I explain this to parents who only speak Telugu?
Use the Telugu words on this page, keep each point short, and talk about protecting the grandchildren as well as themselves. Many elders accept a blood test more easily when it is framed as checking the whole family rather than singling one person out.
Are liver tonics and detox drinks safe?
None has been shown to protect the liver, and some herbal products can damage a liver that is already scarred. If a family member takes one, write it on the medicine list and tell the doctor. You will not be judged, and the doctor can check for harm.
Can we get hepatitis tests through the government?
The National Viral Hepatitis Control Programme offers testing and treatment for hepatitis B and C through designated government centres. Which centres take part, and what is covered, changes over time. Ask at your district hospital for the current arrangements.
Can CION help if a test comes back abnormal?
Yes. Call the CION helpline with the report. A doctor will explain what it means and what to do next, and the team can arrange further scans through accredited partners. Hepatitis treatment itself is decided by a physician or hepatologist.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's liver cancer specialists. Bring your scan reports and liver blood tests.
Our medical and surgical oncologists plan liver cancer care together, weighing the tumour and how well your liver works before choosing surgery, a liver-directed procedure or medicines.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
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Accreditation and empanelment
- NABH
- NABL
- ISO 9001:2015
- ArogyaSri empanelled
- CGHS accepted
- ECHS accepted
- EHS accepted
- Major cashless insurers
Paying for it
Insurance, schemes and payment
What you actually pay usually differs a great deal from the sticker figure.
AarogyasriEmpanelled. Bring the card and a referral where you have one.
CGHS / ECHS / EHSAccepted at CION centres for eligible treatment.
Cashless insuranceMost major insurers are empanelled. Pre-authorisation is handled by our desk.
Self-payItemised estimate given before treatment starts. No EMI scheme exists.
Where to find us
Our centres in and around Hyderabad
Addressed by landmark, because that is how this city navigates. One helpline books a consultation at any of these centres, and your team will tell you where each test and operation takes place.
Warangal
Vizag
Sources
- World Health Organization — Hepatitis B
- NHS — Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
- National Viral Hepatitis Control Program (MoHFW) — National Viral Hepatitis Control Program
- National Cancer Institute — Liver Cancer Screening
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
A family screening checklistWho in the family to test, and in what orderHepatitis B guide in TeluguThe most important local cause, explained for the familyGetting the family vaccinatedHow household members get tested and protectedWhy liver cancer is common in TelanganaThe bigger picture behind this checklist
Talk to us
Not sure what a family member's report means?
Send us the hepatitis test or scan report and tell us who it belongs to. A doctor will explain it in plain words, in Telugu if you prefer. One helpline serves every CION centre.