New Treatments & Clinical Trials for Liver Cirrhosis

Liver cirrhosis is scarring of the liver caused by long-term damage from hepatitis, alcohol, fatty liver disease, or other conditions. About 4.5 million U.S. adults have cirrhosis. Treatment focuses on slowing progression, managing complications like fluid buildup and bleeding, and liver transplant when the liver fails.

What's actually going on in research

Trials are testing drugs to reduce scarring and reverse early fibrosis, new treatments for portal hypertension that causes bleeding and fluid buildup, and ways to prevent liver cancer in people with cirrhosis. Researchers are also studying metabolic therapies for fatty liver disease before it reaches cirrhosis, and artificial liver support devices as a bridge to transplant.

What to know before you search

Eligibility typically depends on cirrhosis cause (alcohol, hepatitis C, fatty liver disease, etc.), severity measured by Child-Pugh or MELD score, presence of complications, and whether decompensation has occurred.

What types of trials are currently open

• Anti-fibrotic trials — Testing drugs that aim to reduce or reverse liver scarring. These often measure changes in liver stiffness and biopsy samples over months to years.
• Portal hypertension trials — Testing treatments to lower pressure in liver blood vessels, which can prevent bleeding from enlarged veins and reduce fluid buildup.
• Complication prevention trials — Studies of drugs or procedures to prevent specific cirrhosis complications like infections, kidney problems, or hepatic encephalopathy (confusion from liver dysfunction).
• Liver cancer screening studies — Testing better ways to detect liver cancer early in people with cirrhosis, when treatment is most effective.
• Registry studies — Long-term tracking of people with cirrhosis to understand disease progression, treatment outcomes, and factors that predict who will need transplant.