The hepatobiliary system encompasses the liver, gallbladder, and bile ducts. This system plays essential roles in removing toxins from the blood, converting food into energy, regulating hormones, producing cholesterol, and regulating the body’s supply of vitamins and minerals. Hepatobiliary problems usually consist of growths or cancer in the liver, bile ducts, or biliary tract. The hepatobiliary problems treated are included below:
Common Hepatobiliary Issues
- Primary liver cancer
- Benign liver tumors
- Adenoma (growths)
- Biliary cysts
- Pancreatic cancer
- Secondary liver cancer from cancer at other parts of the body
- Acute pancreatitis
- Complex benign hepatobiliary and pancreatic problems
Causes of Hepatobiliary Diseases
Viruses such as Hepatitis B and C, heavy alcohol use, and sometimes genetics can increase a patient’s risk of hepatobiliary diseases; however, there is often no identifiable cause for hepatobiliary diseases.
How are Hepatobiliary Diseases Diagnosed?
The hepatobiliary disease may be diagnosed using a combination of laboratory blood tests, ultrasound, MRI, and CT scans.
What are Common Hepatobiliary Diseases?
Some common hepatobiliary diseases include:
- Stones in the gall-bladder and bile ducts
- Liver adenoma
- Liver hemangioma
- Cancer originating in the liver (hepatoma)
- Metastatic cancer of the liver (cancer that traveled to the liver from another place)
- Gallbladder cancer
- Bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma)
- Sclerosing cholangitis
- Bile duct stricture
- Pancreatic cancer
- Chronic pancreatitis
- Cancer of the duodenum
- GIST tumor of the duodenum
How are Hepatobiliary Diseases Treated?
- Many hepatobiliary diseases are treated medically and do not require surgery; however, tumors or anything that causes bile drainage to back up often requires surgery or intervention by a gastroenterologist.
- Some liver tumors can also be treated non-surgically by an interventional radiologist, but most of these require the input of a surgeon.
- Cancers may require treatment such as radiation or chemotherapy in addition to surgery.
Are Hepatobiliary Diseases Curable?
Some hepatobiliary diseases are curable, others require chronic management, and others may need a liver transplant.
This increasingly common but overlooked problem can be treated with early diagnosis and surgery to remove the cancerous parts before they spread to other body parts. Contact Dr. Sumit Talwar for the best Hepatobiliary treatment in Bangalore.
