Gallbladder Cancer

It occurs when the mucosal cells lining the inner tissue of the pear-shaped gallbladder, located under the liver, suffer genetic/environmental damage over time, turn into cancer, form a mass, and grow toward the liver.

The gallbladder is hidden among the abdominal organs and is highly flexible. The cancer usually shows no symptoms until it blocks the bile duct and causes jaundice, or grows to a very large size. Many cases are discovered incidentally in pathology after surgeries performed under the assumption of a simple 'gallstone'.

They do not directly cause cancer, but 80-90% of cancer patients have large, untreated gallstones that have been in their gallbladder for years. The constant friction of stones against the gallbladder wall over years creates chronic inflammation (irritation), which can eventually turn healthy cells cancerous.

When it reaches advanced stages, symptoms include a continuous and dull ache in the upper right abdomen (under the ribs), pale-colored stools, tea-colored urine, yellowing of the eyes and skin (jaundice), severe full-body itching, and abdominal bloating.

Blood tests reveal elevated liver enzymes (Bilirubin, ALP) and tumor markers (CEA, CA 19-9). The size of the mass and its spread to the liver and lymph nodes are clearly mapped out using Abdominal Computed Tomography (CT) or MR Cholangiography.

If the cancer is at a very early stage (confined only within the gallbladder), simply removing the gallbladder provides a complete cure. If the cancer has breached the gallbladder wall and spread to the liver and lymph nodes, a major surgical operation (Radical Cholecystectomy) is performed, removing part of the liver, the gallbladder, and surrounding lymph nodes as a single block. Chemotherapy and targeted drugs are applied for inoperable or advanced metastatic cases.