The main treatment for gall bladder cancer is to remove the cancer entirely with an operation (surgery), if this is possible. Unfortunately, with many patients the disease is found late, when it has spread too far for surgery. However, with successful surgery, the outlook can be very good, although there remains a risk that the cancer will return.

For this type of surgery you will need a general anaesthetic.

If gall bladder cancer has been found after the removal of your gall bladder (cholecystectomy) for gallstones, you may need no further treatment. However you may need another operation to remove part of your liver and the nearby lymph nodes.

If gall bladder cancer is found in the early stages, surgery to remove the gall bladder is done.

Keyhole surgery is not usually used for gall bladder cancer. Open surgery will be necessary, and this is often extensive. This will probably include the surgical removal of the gall bladder, the partial removal of the liver, and the removal of lymph nodes in the nearby area.

Following surgery, radiotherapy may occasionally be necessary. Radiotherapy uses high-energy X-rays to kill cancer cells. There are short-term and long-term side-effects from radiotherapy.

You may also be given chemotherapy (drugs that kill cancer cells).

You will meet your surgeon face-to-face before your operation. Ask him or her to explain what will happen. She or he will also explain the possible complications of the chosen operation.

You will be admitted to hospital the day before the operation, to be assessed by the surgeon, the anaesthetist and nursing staff. You will stay in hospital for 10-14 days.

You will need up to three months to recover from the operation, depending on what type, and how much, surgery you have had.

All surgery has risks, including bleeding and infection. A general anaesthetic can cause breathing problems, or you may have a bad reaction to the drugs used.

Surgical treatment of jaundice
Surgery may also be used to help relieve jaundice. A small tube (called a stent) is inserted into the bile duct if it is blocked.

Related links
Radiotherapy - general
Chemotherapy - general
Surgery - general