TY - JOUR
T1 - Clinical diagnosis and staging of cholangiocarcinoma
AU - Blechacz, Boris
AU - Komuta, Mina
AU - Roskams, Tania
AU - Gores, Gregory J.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by grant DK59427 from the NIH (G. J. Gores), the Mayo Clinic Clinical Investigator Program (B. Blechacz) and the Mayo Foundation.
PY - 2011/9
Y1 - 2011/9
N2 - Cholangiocarcinoma is the most frequent biliary malignancy. It is difficult to diagnose owing to its anatomic location, growth patterns and lack of definite diagnostic criteria. Currently, cholangiocarcinoma is classified into the following types according to its anatomic location along the biliary tree: intrahepatic, perihilar or distal extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. These cholangiocarcinoma types differ in their biological behavior and management. The appropriate stratification of patients with regard to the anatomic location and stage of cholangiocarcinoma is a key determinate in their management. Staging systems can guide this stratification and provide prognostic information. In addition, staging systems are essential in order to compare and contrast the outcomes of different therapeutic approaches. A number of staging systems exist for cholangiocarcinomaĝ€"several early ones have been updated, and new ones are being developed. We discuss the emerging diagnostic criteria as well as the different staging systems for cholangiocarcinoma, and provide a critical appraisal regarding these advances in biliary tract malignancies.
AB - Cholangiocarcinoma is the most frequent biliary malignancy. It is difficult to diagnose owing to its anatomic location, growth patterns and lack of definite diagnostic criteria. Currently, cholangiocarcinoma is classified into the following types according to its anatomic location along the biliary tree: intrahepatic, perihilar or distal extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. These cholangiocarcinoma types differ in their biological behavior and management. The appropriate stratification of patients with regard to the anatomic location and stage of cholangiocarcinoma is a key determinate in their management. Staging systems can guide this stratification and provide prognostic information. In addition, staging systems are essential in order to compare and contrast the outcomes of different therapeutic approaches. A number of staging systems exist for cholangiocarcinomaĝ€"several early ones have been updated, and new ones are being developed. We discuss the emerging diagnostic criteria as well as the different staging systems for cholangiocarcinoma, and provide a critical appraisal regarding these advances in biliary tract malignancies.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=80052552459&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=80052552459&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/nrgastro.2011.131
DO - 10.1038/nrgastro.2011.131
M3 - Review article
C2 - 21808282
AN - SCOPUS:80052552459
SN - 1759-5045
VL - 8
SP - 512
EP - 522
JO - Nature Reviews Gastroenterology and Hepatology
JF - Nature Reviews Gastroenterology and Hepatology
IS - 9
ER -