TriangleFOR PATIENTS · SOURCE READING
Treatment of resectable (localized) bile duct cancer
Source: Bile Duct Cancer Treatment, National Cancer Institute.
Source updated: May 24, 2024 · Captured 2026-09-09.
Selected source text with whitespace normalised. This Triangle page is not an NCI PDQ summary. Independent clinical review is pending.
If the cancer has not spread and is in a place where surgery can be safely done, the tumor and some of the tissue around it will be removed. This lowers the chance of the cancer coming back. Chemotherapy with or without radiation therapy may be given after surgery.
Treatment of resectable intrahepatic bile duct cancer may include surgery to remove the cancer. A partial hepatectomy with or without embolization may be done before the surgery.
Source links and citations
Treatment of resectable perihilar bile duct cancer may include:
surgery to remove the cancer, which may include partial hepatectomy
stent placement or percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage, as palliative therapy to relieve jaundice and other symptoms and improve quality of life
Source links and citations
Treatment of resectable distal bile duct cancer may include:
surgery to remove the cancer, which may include a Whipple procedure
stent placement or percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage, as palliative therapy to relieve jaundice and other symptoms and improve quality of life
Adjuvant therapy for resectable bile duct cancer may include:
chemotherapy
external-beam radiation therapy
a clinical trial of adjuvant therapy
Preserved source evidence · Independent clinical review pending · Not medical advice