D01.5: Carcinoma in situ: Liver, gallbladder and bile ducts

The tissue in the body is made up of cells. Cancer causes the cells to change, resulting in them multiplying uncontrollably. This leads to a malignant neoplasm (abnormal growth of tissue) developing. This abnormal and excessive tissue growth is called cancer. In your case, the cancer is limited to the skin or mucous membranes. This means that the cancer is very superficial and has not currently extended beyond a certain limit in the tissue. This also means the cancer has not yet been able to spread to other organs. However, the cancer cells can destroy the healthy tissue.

You often don’t get any symptoms with this early form of cancer.

You have an early form of cancer in the inner lining (mucous membrane) of your liver, gallbladder or bile ducts. The liver is an important organ on the top right of the abdomen. For example, it helps with blood clotting and detoxifying the body. Nutrients from food are processed in the liver. The gallbladder is in the top right part of the abdomen below the liver. The liver produces bile. The bile flows through bile ducts to the gallbladder and is stored there. When needed, the bile flows through another bile duct to the intestine. There, the bile helps to digest fats.