A new technique for the palliative treatment of high bile duct cancer.

In case of advanced unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma palliative procedures can offer a good quality of life. Palliative techniques include surgical intubation with a U tube or transhepatic ring catheters, nonoperative intubation with an endoprosthesis and biliary-enteric bypass techniques. We present a new surgical procedure for the palliative treatment of high bile duct cancer, in which the gallbladder is used as a conduit for a biliary-enteric bypass. Hepatico-cholecysto-jejunostomy is a safe, rapid and easy method that could be alternatively and successfully used for surgical palliation of unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma.