What are the common types of bile duct cancer

The incidence of bile duct cancer is not very high, so many people do not know much about the disease. They only know that it is a malignant tumor that often occurs in the elderly. There are several classification standards for bile duct cancer in clinical practice, and there are also several types under different classification standards. So, what are the common types of bile duct cancer?

1. The location of extrahepatic bile duct cancer. Anatomically, extrahepatic bile duct cancer can be divided into the following types according to the location of the cancer:

① Left and right hepatoduct cancer;

② Common hepatic duct cancer;

③Cholecystic duct cancer;

④ Cancer at the junction of the common hepatic duct, cystic duct and common bile duct;

⑤Common bile duct cancer.

2. Gross morphology of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: Extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma can be divided into three types based on gross morphology:

① Tube wall infiltration type: It can be seen in any part of the bile duct and is the most common. Due to the thickening of the affected tube wall, the lumen may become smaller or narrow, which may lead to obstruction.

② Nodular type: less common than the wall infiltration type, it can be seen in more advanced cholangiocarcinoma. The diameter of the cancerous nodule can be 1.5 to 5.0 cm.

③ Intraluminal papillary type: the rarest type, which can be seen in any part of the bile duct, but is even less common at the junction.

This type can completely block the bile duct. In addition to growing into the lumen, the cancerous tissue can also further infiltrate and grow into the wall of the bile duct.

3. Histological types of extrahepatic bile duct cancer: According to the type of cancer cells, the degree of differentiation and the growth pattern of cancer tissue, extrahepatic bile duct cancer can be divided into the following 6 types:

1. Poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma: that is, poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma. The cancerous tissue partially presents a glandular structure, and partially presents irregular solid masses, which also diffusely infiltrate and grow in the tube wall.

2. Undifferentiated carcinoma: less common. Some small cancer cells are undifferentiated carcinomas, similar to undifferentiated carcinomas of the gallbladder. The cancer cells diffusely infiltrate the bile duct wall, with less interstitial tissue. The cancer tissue is more invasive and can often invade the fat tissue around the bile duct or nearby organs.

3. Signet ring carcinoma: less common. Like signet ring carcinoma of the gallbladder or gastrointestinal tract, it is composed of mucus-containing carcinoma cells of varying degrees of differentiation. The carcinoma cells have no definite structure and are diffusely infiltrated.

4. Squamous cell carcinoma: rare. Its tissue morphology is similar to that seen in other organs.

5. Papillary adenocarcinoma: Except for a few of the wall-infiltration type, almost all of them are intracavitary papillary type.

6. Well-differentiated adenocarcinoma: It is the most common type in bile duct cancer, accounting for more than 2/3, and can be found in any part. The cancerous tissue infiltrates and grows in the duct wall, surrounding the entire duct wall. The infiltrated cancerous tissue presents glandular structures of varying sizes and irregular shapes, and some can expand into cystic cavities.

The above is an introduction to the common types of bile duct cancer. I hope it will be helpful to you.