Stages of Bile Duct Cancer
When and how does my doctor determine the stage of my biliary duct cancer?
Staging is the process to find out if the cancer has spread within the bile ducts or to the other parts or organs of the body. The stage of your biliary duct cancer is determined from the results of physical exams, imaging tests and biopsies.
The TNM system, where T refers to the tumor size, N denotes if the lymph nodes in the area of the bile ducts have become cancerous and M suggests if the cancer has spread to other, distant organs in the body, such as your bones, liver, or lungs is a standard system used to stage bile duct cancer.
The commonly used staging system was developed by the American Joint Committee on Cancer and the International Union Against Cancer.
Depending on where the cancer starts, bile duct cancers can fall into one of the three different staging systems:
- Intrahepatic bile duct cancers: The cancer type starts within the liver
- Perihilar (hilar) bile duct cancers: The cancer type that starts in the hilum; the area just outside the liver
- Distal bile duct cancers: The cancer type starts farther down the bile duct system
Nearly all bile duct cancers start in the innermost layer of the wall of the bile duct, called mucosa. Over time, they can grow through the wall toward the outside of the bile duct. So if a tumor grows through the bile duct wall, it can invade nearby blood vessels, organs, and other structures. It might also grow into nearby lymphatic or blood vessels and from there spread to nearby lymph nodes or to other parts of the body.
How dangerous is biliary duct cancer?
Even though Cholangiocarcinomas, which are part of the family of tumors known as adenocarcinomas, are rare, they often prove to be fatal.
What are the stages of biliary duct cancers?
As mentioned above, based on where the cancer starts, bile duct cancer staging system and its stages may vary as listed below:
1800 208 2000
