What factors are related to the occurrence of bile duct cancer

Cholangiocarcinoma is a malignant tumor and a relatively dangerous disease. The medical community has been committed to studying the pathogenic factors of bile duct cancer. Although its cause is still unclear, its onset is not without trace. So, what factors are related to the occurrence of bile duct cancer? Let's take a look at the following introduction.

1. Chronic inflammation and infection of the bile duct: Long-term chronic inflammation is the basis for the occurrence of bile duct cancer, because clinically found that diseases related to bile duct cancer can lead to chronic inflammation of the bile duct. Certain substances in the bile (such as metabolites of bile acid) stimulate the bile duct mucosa for a long time, leading to atypical epithelial hyperplasia.

2. Bile duct and gallbladder stones: 20% to 57% of bile duct cancer patients have gallstones, so it is believed that chronic stimulation from stones may be a carcinogenic factor.

3. Ulcerative colitis: It has been reported that the incidence of bile duct cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis is 10 times higher than that in the general population. The age of onset of bile duct cancer patients with ulcerative colitis is 20 to 30 years earlier than that of the general population, with an average age of 40 to 45 years. They often have a long history of colitis. Chronic bacteremia in the portal vein system of patients may be the cause of bile duct cancer and PSC. The lesions often affect the entire colon. Ulcerative colitis-induced bile duct cancer may be related to chronic portal vein bacteremia.

4. Cystic malformation of the bile duct (congenital bile duct dilatation): It has become a consensus that congenital bile duct cysts are prone to cancer. The incidence of bile duct cancer in patients with congenital bile duct cysts is as high as 2.5% to 28%. Patients with bile duct cysts develop cancer 20 to 30 years earlier than normal people. Although 75% of bile duct cysts show symptoms in infancy and childhood, as far as the occurrence of bile duct cancer is concerned, 3/4 of patients have symptoms of bile duct cysts in adulthood. Regarding the mechanism of bile duct cysts leading to bile duct cancer, some people believe that when the opening of the pancreatic duct into the bile duct is abnormally high, pancreatic fluid will flow back into the bile duct and cause malignant changes in the bile duct epithelium. Other factors that may lead to malignant changes include bile stasis, stone formation, and chronic inflammation in the cyst cavity.

5. Liver fluke (Clorchis sinensis) infection: Clonorchis sinensis infection is also believed to be related to the occurrence of cholangiocarcinoma. Although Clonorchis sinensis mostly parasitizes in the intrahepatic bile duct, it can also parasitize in the extrahepatic bile duct. The worm itself and its metabolic products cause long-term stimulation to the bile duct mucosal epithelium, causing hyperplasia of the bile duct mucosa, tumor-like changes, and cancer.

Through the above introduction, we know that although we cannot be absolutely sure that the occurrence of bile duct cancer is caused by these factors, bile duct cancer certainly does not occur for no reason. There may be some factors that induce the occurrence of bile duct cancer, so we still need to do more research on these factors.