Gallbladder Cancer

Gallbladder cancer is cancer that begins in the gallbladder. Gallbladder cancer is uncommon. When gallbladder cancer is discovered at its earliest stages, the chance for a cure is much more. But most gallbladder cancers are discovered at a late stage, so the treatment becomes very difficult for those patients. Gallbladder cancer is difficult to diagnose because it often causes no specific signs or symptoms. Also, the relatively hidden nature of the gallbladder makes it easier for gallbladder cancer to grow without being detected. Few symptoms of Gallbladder cancer include: Abdominal pain, particularly in the upper right portion of the abdomen, abdominal bloating, fever, losing weight without trying, Nausea, Yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice). The main types of treatments for gallbladder cancer include: Surgery, Radiation therapy, Chemotherapy, Palliative therapy etc. Dr Himanshu is very well known and best surgeon of gallbladder cancer in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. ICU facility is also available which sometimes provide extensive support to critical patients in the hospital during treatment or surgery.

Symptoms of Gallbladder Cancer:

Gallbladder cancer doesn’t usually cause symptoms in its early stages. So, by the time you know it’s there, it might be at a more advanced stage than some other types of cancer. At diagnosis, it has often spread outside the gallbladder itself to areas nearby. It can be difficult for doctors to feel if your gallbladder is swollen or tender when they examine you. The gallbladder lies behind other organs deep inside your body, so it can be difficult to feel. Many early stage cancers of the gallbladder are found by chance. You may get a number of symptoms with gallbladder cancer. Most of these happen in the later stages of the disease.

• Tummy (abdominal) pain
• Jaundice: yellowing skin and whites of the eyes, severe itching in some people, darkened urine, pale coloured stools (bowel movements)
• Gallbladder enlargement
• Loss of appetite (anorexia)
• Loss of weight without dieting
• Swollen tummy (abdomen) particularly in the upper right portion of the abdomen
• Abdominal Bloating

Treatment Types of Gallbladder Cancer:

Surgery of Gallbladder Cancer:

Surgery is the main treatment for gallbladder cancer. There are many possible types of operations to remove the cancer. The amount of surgery needed will depend on the stage of gallbladder cancer. There are a number of possible operations that can be used to remove the cancer (and gallbladder). Some of them are extremely major surgery. The type of operation you have depends on where the cancer is in the gallbladder and how far it has spread outside your gallbladder.

Removal of the gallbladder:

Patient’s whole gallbladder is removed in this operation. Usually the upper right side of your tummy (abdomen) is opened up to have a simple cholecystectomy. But some people can now have this operation with a laparoscope. This is also called keyhole surgery or laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Removal of the gallbladder, lymph nodes and part of the liver:

This operation is performed if the cancer has spread throughout patient’s gallbladder. It may take out

• all of your gallbladder
• about 2.5cm of liver tissue nearest to the gallbladder
• all the lymph nodes around gallbladder
• tissue surrounding the site of any previous keyhole surgery to the gallbladder

This is to make sure that any cancer cells in the surrounding tissues are removed.

Removal of the gallbladder and surrounding tissues:

If the cancer has spread outside your gallbladder to nearby lymph nodes, there will be needed an even bigger operation. We will remove:

• the gallbladder
• a small part of the liver close to the gallbladder
• the common bile ducts
• tissue surrounding the site of any previous keyhole surgery to the gallbladder
• part or all of a fibrous strap (a ligament) that connects your liver and intestines
• the lymph nodes from around nearby organs such as the liver, stomach, intestines and pancreas

Surgery to remove nearby organs affected by the cancer

If the cancer has spread to other organs in your body, you may need to have them removed. This can include taking out:

• your pancreas
• a larger part of your liver
• your duodenum (the beginning of your small bowel)
• any other parts of organs that contain cancer cells, for example your stomach or part of your bowel

Chemotherapy:

for early stage gallbladder cancer: Chemotherapy is not often used for early stage gallbladder cancer. Early stage means that the cancer hasn’t spread beyond the gallbladder. Chemotherapy before surgery is neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is used to reduce the size of the cancer before surgery. This is to increase the possibility of removing all the cancer. For advanced gallbladder cancer: If you have advanced gallbladder cancer, you may be suggested chemotherapy to try to shrink the cancer, slow it down, or relieve any symptoms you have. The most common chemotherapy used is a combination of gemcitabine and cisplatin.