Palliative radiation therapy may be beneficial to some patients as well. Various clinical trials are underway on the use of radiotherapy, with or without hyperthermia, as well as cytotoxic drugs in the treatment of this disease. 5-FU, doxorubicin and mitomycin have been reported to produce transient partial remissions in a minority of patients. We shall have more to say about such trials below. If an extra-hepatic bile duct cancer was removed surgically, but then recurs, then the treatment options are about the same as for inoperable disease.
Prognosis is poor with conventional treatment.
Relief of jaundice will usually improve quality of life. This type of tumor is so rare that you certainly want to find an expert to treat it, if possible. These are more likely to be found at the major, comprehensive cancer centers than at local or regional hospitals. Whenever an operative procedure has a relatively high mortality rate this becomes extremely important. I don't think there is any single outstanding international expert on this type of cancer.