Systemic therapy

Systemic therapy is appropriate for selected patients with adequate performance status and intact organ function. Fluoropyrimidines, gemcitabine, platinum agents, and docetaxel have produced transient partial remissions in a few patients. The incidence of gallbladder cancer is low, and clinical trials often enroll patients with all subsites of biliary tract cancers. Therefore, data must be interpreted with caution when applied specifically to patients with gallbladder cancer. In clinical practice, treatment algorithms in advanced disease often follow those with biliary tract cancer, relying on extrapolation from other trials. In this section, only current landmark studies, or those that specifically enrolled patients with gallbladder cancer, have been explicitly summarized. For more information, see Bile Duct Cancer (Cholangiocarcinoma) Treatment.