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World J Gastrointest Surg. Nov 30, 2009; 1(1): 26-29
Published online Nov 30, 2009. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v1.i1.26
Surgery for gallbladder cancer: The need to generate greater evidence
Shailesh V Shrikhande, Savio G Barreto
Shailesh V Shrikhande, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai 400012, India
Savio G Barreto, Department of General and Digestive Surgery, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide 5042, Australia
Author contributions: Shrikhande SV conceived and designed the review, revised it critically and approved the final edition; Barreto SG acquired the data, drafted the article, analysis and interpretation of data, and approved the final version.
Correspondence to: Shailesh V Shrikhande, MBBS, MS, MD, Associate Professor and Consultant Surgeon, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai 400012, India. shailushrikhande@hotmail.com
Telephone: +91-22-24177173 Fax: +91-22-24148114
Received: October 9, 2009
Revised: October 30, 2009
Accepted: November 6, 2009
Published online: November 30, 2009
Abstract

The outcomes for gallbladder cancer remain largely dismal to this day. Overall, the low incidence of gallbladder cancer around the world coupled with an even lower number of patients amenable to surgery at the time of presentation, has precluded the generation of evidence-based guidelines for the management of this cancer. However, while the incidence of the cancer may be decreasing in some parts of the world, in other countries such as India, Japan and Chile, gallbladder cancer continues to affect a sizeable population of patients. As such, there is a growing need to define what constitutes an adequate surgery for each stage of this cancer, based on sound evidence. This editorial provides a broad overview of the existing problems in the management of gallbladder cancer and appeals for multi-institutional studies aimed at answering some of the pertinent questions on the surgical management of gallbladder cancer.

Keywords: Treatment outcome; Lymphadenectomy; Incidence; Survival rate