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Treatment of unresectable bile duct cancer (including metastatic or recurrent disease)
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.
Most people with bile duct cancer cannot have their cancer completely removed with surgery. This may be the case if the cancer has spread too far, the cancer is in a place that is too difficult to completely remove with surgery, or the patient is not healthy enough for surgery.
Treatment of unresectable bile duct cancer (including metastatic or recurrent disease) may include:
stent placement or biliary bypass, as palliative treatment to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life
Source links and citations
external or internal radiation therapy, as palliative treatment to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life
systemic chemotherapy
immunotherapy (durvalumab or pembrolizumab) and systemic chemotherapy
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targeted therapy with pemigatinib
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a clinical trial of various combinations of chemotherapy
a clinical trial of immunotherapy or targeted therapy in people with mutations (changes) in certain genes
Preserved source evidence · Independent clinical review pending · Not medical advice