Treatment of Gall Bladder Cancer: A Review

Cancer of the gallbladder is rare and more common in women and Native Americans. Gallbladder cancer is a comparatively rare cancer and has poor outcome due to their anatomy and location. It is hard to diagnose gallbladder cancer in its early stages. Sometimes doctors find it when they remove the gallbladder for another reason. But people with gallstones rarely have gallbladder cancer. Because it is often found late, it can be hard to treat gallbladder cancer. Treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation or a combination. It is fifteen uncommon cancers in the world with high mortality rate. The diagnosis is made very late due to its silent course. The majority of patients have advanced disease at the time of presentation which carries a poor prognosis. The modes of spread of gall bladder carcinoma are direct, lymphatic, vascular, neural, intraperitoneal and intraductal. Ultra Sound, CT and MRI are helpful in diagnosis and staging of the disease. Surgery remains the mainstay of treatment and chemotherapy has a very limited role. © 2011 IGJPS. All rights reserved.