Gallstones and Gallbladder Disease - Prognosis

Anomalous Junction of the Pancreatic and Biliary Ducts. With this rare inborn condition, the junction of the common bile duct and main pancreatic duct is outside the wall of the small intestine and forms a long channel between them. This problem poses a very high risk for cancers in the biliary tract.

Porcelain Gallbladders. Gallbladders are referred to as porcelain when their walls have become so calcified that they look like porcelain on an x-ray. Porcelain gallbladders have been associated with a very high risk for cancer, although recent evidence suggests that the risk is lower than previously thought. The incidence appears to depend on the presence of specific factors, such as partial calcification involving the mucosal lining. This condition may develop from a chronic inflammatory reaction that may actually be responsible for the cancer risk. Studies are reporting no higher risk with "true" porcelain gallbladders, in which the gallbladder walls are entirely calcified.

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