Bile Duct Cancer

Cholangiocarcinoma is cancer that forms in the slender tubes (bile ducts) that carry the digestive fluid bile. Bile ducts connect your liver to your gallbladder and to your small intestine. This condition, also known as bile duct cancer, is an uncommon form of cancer that occurs mostly in people older than age 50, though it can occur at any age.

Doctors divide cholangiocarcinoma into different types based on where the cancer occurs in the bile ducts:

• Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma occurs in the parts of the bile ducts within the liver and is sometimes classified as a type of liver cancer.
• Hilar cholangiocarcinoma occurs in the bile ducts just outside of the liver. This type is also called perihilar cholangiocarcinoma.
• Distal cholangiocarcinoma occurs in the portion of the bile duct nearest the small intestine.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of cholangiocarcinoma include:

• Yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes (jaundice)
• Intensely itchy skin
• White-colored stools
• Fatigue
• Abdominal pain
• Unintended weight loss

Risk factors

Factors that may increase your risk of cholangiocarcinoma include:

• Primary sclerosing cholangitis. This disease causes hardening and scarring of the bile ducts.
• Chronic liver disease. Scarring of the liver caused by a history of chronic liver disease increases the risk of cholangiocarcinoma.
• Bile duct problems present at birth. People born with a choledochal cyst, which causes dilated and irregular bile ducts, have an increased risk of cholangiocarcinoma.
• A liver parasite. In areas of Southeast Asia, cholangiocarcinoma is associated with liver fluke infection, which can occur from eating raw or undercooked fish.
• Older age. Cholangiocarcinoma occurs most often in adults over age 50.
• Smoking. Smoking is associated with an increased risk of cholangiocarcinoma.