Gallbladder Cancer
What is Gallbladder Cancer?
Your gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ in your upper right abdomen located under liver, primarily responsible for storing bile, which aids in the digestion of fats. Bile is composed mainly of cholesterol, bilirubin, and bile salts. The gallbladder is linked to other parts of the digestive system through a network of bile ducts, collectively known as the biliary tract (Turumin et al., 2013, p. 81).
Gallbladder cancer, though rare, is the most common malignancy of the biliary tract, accounting for 80%-95% of such cancers. Early diagnosis is critical, as the disease often progresses silently and is typically fatal when diagnosed late (Nagorney & McPherson, 1988, p. 106).
Surgery is the only potential cure, but most cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor survival rates—5-year survival is only 5%. Improved imaging and aggressive surgery, along with adjuvant therapy, have led to better outcomes (Hundal & Shaffer, 2014, p. 99).
Literature
1. Turumin, J. L., Shanturov, V. A., & Turumina, H. E. (2013). The role of the gallbladder in humans. Revista de Gastroenterología de México, 78(2), 81–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rgmx.2013.02.003
2. Nagorney, D. M., & McPherson, G. A. (1988). Carcinoma of the gallbladder and extrahepatic bile ducts. Seminars in oncology, 15(2), 106–115.
3. Hundal, R., & Shaffer, E. A. (2014). Gallbladder cancer: epidemiology and outcome. Clinical Epidemiology, 6, 99–109. https://doi.org/10.2147/CLEP.S37357