Introduction

There has been much discussion on how to find the best gallbladder cancer hospital in India, as Gallbladder cancer is considered to be the 5thmost common gastrointestinal cancer. This becomes easier if you know about your disease in details. Read below to under about various aspects of gallbladder cancer treatment in India.

Our gallbladder is a small organ, which is pear-shaped and present on the right side of our abdomen, just under our liver. Itgrasps a digestive fluid known as bile which is released into our small intestine.Gallbladder cancer is known to occur when cancerous cells start growing abnormally in gallbladder.

Signs and Symptoms of Gallbladder Cancer

In its initial stages, gallbladder cancer is usually asymptomatic. However,when signs and symptoms start developing, they typically overlap with that of gallstones and cholecystitis.

When there is onset of symptoms, they commonly get identified as –

• Abdominal pain and cramps
• Lump in the abdominal area
• Stomach bloating
• Nausea and Vomiting
• Itchy skin and fever
• Yellowing of skin

If you experience above symptoms, it is better to connect with one of the best doctor for gallbladder cancer in India.We suggest you to see your doctor as soon as possible after the onset of above symptoms. Although other cancers show signs in early stage, remember that gallbladder cancer may or may not be obviously prominent until it reaches it’s late stages. It’s important to seek you doctor’sadvise and get treated as soon as possible.

How is Gallbladder Cancer Diagnosed?

There are various tests used for diagnosis of gallbladder cancer. Your treating doctor will consider following factors before prescribing you a test –

• Signs and symptoms you have
• The type of cancer he is suspecting
• Your age and overall health condition
• The results of other medical tests done earlier

You will be first physically examinedand then following tests would be suggested to diagnose if you have gallbladder cancer:

• Blood Investigations
• Biopsy
• ERCP (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio Pancreatography)
• CT Scan/MRI
• Endoscopic ultrasonography
• PET CT

Treatment of Gallbladder Cancer in India

Once the diagnosis of gallbladder cancer is confirmed, a team of doctors comprising of your gastroenterologist, a surgeon, a radiation oncologist and a medical oncologist will sit together for tumor board discussion and finalize your line of treatment.

The most common types of gallbladder cancer treatment in India are listed below –

1. Surgery
For treating your gallbladder cancer, surgeon may choose to do cholecystectomysurgery for removing the gallbladder as well as some of the nearby tissues. The surrounding lymph nodes may also get removed.Radical gallbladder resection and Palliative surgery are the other surgical interventions done to relieve symptoms triggered by gallbladder cancer.

If your growing gallbladdertumor is blocking the bile duct and bile starts building up in the gallbladder, then your doctor may opt to do a biliary bypass surgery or Endoscopic stent placement or Percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage procedure.

2. Radiation Therapy
Your radiation oncologist will make use of high energy x-rays for destroying cancerous cells in your gallbladder.The commonly used radiation treatment for gallbladder cancer is – External-beam Radiation Therapy in which is radiation is given from a machine that is placed outside of your body.

Sometimes, radiation therapy is also used before surgery in order to shrink the size of tumor or after surgery in order to destroy any remaining cancerous cells.

3. Chemotherapy
The best hospital for gallbladder cancer treatment in Indiais known for using very accurate treatment modules that can best suit the patient during his or her treatment journey. Besides surgery and radiation therapy, they also use chemotherapy for destroying cancer cells.In this therapy, drugs are also used for stopping the cancer cells from further growing, and multiplying into more cells.

Chemotherapy is normally used as a palliative care treatment option for gallbladder cancer patients. It may be suggested after the tumorgets removed surgically (adjuvant chemotherapy) or also before surgery (neoadjuvant chemotherapy).

4. Therapies involving Medication
Treatments using medication also help in killing cancer cells. These medications are given through the bloodstream so that they easily reach cancer cells all across the body. This is called systemic therapy.

Medications are normally given through IV tube placed into your vein with the help of a needle or can also be given as a pill or capsule which is orally swallowed.

5. Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is a new age treatment method developed for treating your cancer through the use of ways that make your immune system fight against the cancer. Here, the substances made by your body or produced in a laboratory are used to enhance, direct, or restore your body’s natural defences against cancer. This type of treatment is also referred as biologic therapy.

Some gallbladder tumors have explicit mutations in their DNA which makes them more treatable with specific immunotherapy drugs.

Treatment ofRecurrent Gallbladder Cancer

Gallbladder cancer, just like other organ cancers, has tendency to come back either in the gallbladder itself or surrounding areas (known as local recurrence).It may also return in a distantly located part of the body (known as distant recurrence).

So, when your cancer recurs, a new round of testing altogether is required to be performed for figuring out the cancer’s exact location and nature.

Treatment options for recurring gallbladder cancer would depend upon various factors like – what treatment was done during the first time it had occurred, where is it located, and whether or not your body is strong enough to withstand surgery or new treatment module.

Outcomes of Gallbladder Cancer Surgery in India

Your treatment outcome will depend upon various factors like –

• The stage of your gallbladder cancer
• Your overall health conditions
• Your medical and family history of illness
• Extent to which your gallbladder can be successfully removed
• If you have recurrent cancer (means cancer has come back)

Survivorship of Gallbladder Cancer is different for every individual. It starts from the time you get diagnosed, continues during the treatment phase and through the rest of your life. A 5-year survival rate of up to 75% is shown to be achievedif stage-adjusted therapy is planned and performed successfully.