Radical Cholecystectomy For Gall Bladder Cancer

Radical Cholecystectomy For Gall Bladder Cancer

The gall bladder is a common cancer of the hepatobiliary system in Asia. It is usually seen in patients with long-standing gallstone disease. In the early phase, cancer grows silently without causing any discomfort to the patient. Depending on the site of origin in the gall bladder, this cancer can present with pain and weight loss or with jaundice or as a palpable hard mass in the right upper abdomen.
The mainstay of treatment for gallbladder cancer is surgery. The standard surgery for gall bladder cancer is radical cholecystectomy. In this surgery along with a gall bladder, a part of the liver and the lymph nodes draining the gall bladder are removed. In more advanced cases, part of the bile duct, part of the stomach, duodenum and large intestine are also removed in order to facilitate the complete removal of the tumor. In locally advanced cases a course of chemotherapy prior to surgery is helpful in reducing the size of tumor thereby making inoperable tumor operable.