Thierry Ardisson’s family announced his death from liver cancer on July 14. What are the risk factors and symptoms of this disease? Here’s what you need to know.
“Thierry died as he lived.” “As a brave and free man.” With these words, Audrey Crespo-Mara, journalist and wife of Thierry Ardisson, described her husband’s death on July 14 at the age of 76. “He had been ill for years. Years. There were changes, treatments. Until the day when there were no more possible treatments. The devastating blow came on Wednesday, when we realized it was a matter of days,” his old friend Laurent Baffie told Le Parisien….@@@
In the documentary *The Hidden Face of the Man in Black*, written and directed by Audrey Crespo-Mara and broadcast on July 16 on TF1, Thierry Ardisson reveals that he had been suffering from liver cancer since 2012. The documentary team accompanied him to the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital (APHP) in Paris in December 2024, when he was about to undergo radiotherapy. A few months later, in March 2025, he discovered he had nodules in his lungs.
What are the risk factors for liver cancer? Liver
cacer is among the cancers with
the worst prognosis, according to the French League Against Cancer. In
2023, 11,660 new cases were registered in France, and 76% of them
affected men. It is worth noting that this disease occurs more
frequently in a liver already weakened by alcoholic cirrhosis or viral
hepatitis.
Alcohol is the leading risk factor for liver cancer, accounting for 48% of new cases, according to the French National Cancer Institute (INCa). Tobacco use, hepatitis B and C, obesity and being overweight, hemochromatosis, fatty liver disease, and a sedentary lifestyle are also risk factors.
The following are some signs that may be indicative of liver cancer:
Read more on the next page
Liver cancer is often detected during follow-up care for alcoholic cirrhosis or viral hepatitis. However, when it affects a healthy person, it is asymptomatic in most cases, which often leads to late diagnosis. If it is a so-called “silent” liver cancer, symptoms may appear and vary depending on the stage, according to the Léon Bérard Cancer Center. These may include:
Fatigue;
abdominal pain localized to the right side of the abdomen;
unexplained weight loss;
jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes);
abdominal swelling;
loss of appetite;
nausea;
itching. In a video posted to her TikTok account in
November 2023, Dr. Pauline Guillouche, a gastroenterologist and
hepatologist, reminded viewers that symptoms indicative of liver
dysfunction “are not specific to liver cancer, but should prompt a
consultation with a doctor for further testing.”
Liver cancer: What are the possible treatments?
On its website, the INCa (National Cancer Institute) lists the “four standard treatment types” for liver cancer:
Partial surgical removal of the part of the liver containing the tumor;
liver transplantation;
tumor ablation, which aims to destroy the tumor locally
using heat or cold, through the skin and therefore without opening the
abdomen;
chemotherapy, which aims to reduce the size of the tumor and slow the progression of the disease.
Liver cancer: key points to remember
In 2023, almost 11,660 new cases of liver cancer were diagnosed in France.
Alcohol, tobacco, hepatitis B and C, obesity and
being overweight, hemochromatosis, fatty liver disease, and a sedentary
lifestyle are risk factors.
Liver cancer is asymptomatic in most cases, which often leads to late diagnosis.
Symptoms may appear and vary depending on the stage.
These symptoms are not specific to liver cancer, but they should prompt a
consultation for further testing.
Sources:
AFP
Death of Thierry Ardisson: “He died like a rock star,” says his friend Laurent Baffie – Le Parisien (July 14, 2025)
Liver cancer – National Cancer Institute (INCa)
Liver cancer – League Against Cancer
Liver cancer – Léon Bérard Cancer Center
Cancer Outlook 2025 – National Cancer Institute (INCa)