Statistics and outlook for gallbladder cancer

This page contains quite detailed information about the survival rates of different stages of gallbladder cancer. We have included it because people have asked us for this. But not everyone who is diagnosed with a cancer wants to read this type of information. If you are not sure whether you want to know at the moment, you might like to skip this page for now. You can always come back to it.

Please note – There are no national statistics available for different stages of cancer or treatments that people have had. The statistics presented here are pulled together from a variety of different sources, including the opinions and experience of the experts who check our information. We give statistics because people ask us for them. But they are only intended as a general guide and can't tell you what will happen in your individual case.

Our section on incidence, mortality and survival statistics explains the different types of cancer statistics. Unless you are very familiar with medical statistics, it might help to read this before you read the statistics below.

Remember – statistics are averages based on large numbers of people. They cannot predict exactly what will happen to you. No two patients are exactly alike and response to treatment also varies from one person to another.

You may hear doctors use the term 5 year survival. This does not mean you will only live 5 years. It relates to the number of people who are alive 5 years after diagnosis. Doctors follow what happens to people for at least 5 years after treatment in any research study. This is because there is only a small chance of the cancer coming back more than 5 years after treatment. Doctors do not like to say these people are cured because there is that small chance. So they use the term 5 year survival instead.

As with many other types of cancer, the outcome depends on how advanced your cancer is when it is diagnosed. In other words, the stage of your cancer. Sadly, for most people cancer of the gallbladder does not have a very good outlook. By the time it is diagnosed, it is often in the later stages and treatment is unlikely to cure it.

Of all the people diagnosed with cancer of the gallbladder only around 1 out of 10 (10%) will live for more than 5 years.

The links below take you down the page to specific information about the outlook for the different stages of gallbladder cancer.

• Stage 0 and 1
• Stage 2 to 4

Stage 0 and 1

If you have such an early stage of cancer of the gallbladder, you are most likely to have the gallbladder removed (simple cholecystectomy). If the cancer is just in the gallbladder lining (stage 0) the chance of living for more than 5 years is about 80%. But if the cancer has spread into the muscle (stage 1 gallbladder cancer) only about 5 in 10 people (50%) will live for more than 5 years. 

Some surgeons believe that taking out nearby lymph nodes and some liver tissue during the operation helps stop the cancer coming back. They believe this will improve the long term outcome for people with stage 1 gallbladder cancer. This operation is called an extended cholecystectomy. 

Stage 2 to 4

Unfortunately only about 3 in 10 people (30%) will survive 5 years or longer with stage 2 gallbladder cancer. If you have an extended cholecystectomy or more extensive surgery, then you may have a slightly better chance than this. In stage 3 gallbladder cancer and stage 4 gallbladder cancer the cancer has spread into surrounding tissue or lymph nodes and cannot usually be removed. In this situation treatment can be given to control the cancer for some time. The average survival time is about 6 months but this can vary a lot depending on how much the cancer has grown and where it has spread. Fewer than 1 in 10 people (10%) with stage 3 or 4 gallbladder cancer will live for at least 5 years.

No statistics can tell you what will happen to you. Your cancer is unique. For example, the same type of cancer can grow at different rates in different people. The statistics are not detailed enough to tell you about the different treatments people may have had. And how that treatment may have affected their outlook. Many individual factors will determine your treatment and prognosis.

Research evidence shows that taking part in clinical trials may improve outlook. No one is completely sure why this is. It is probably partly to do with your doctors and nurses monitoring you more closely if you are in a trial. For example, you may have more scans and blood tests. There is more information in our trials and research section. You can also search our clinical trial database to find trials for cancer of the gallbladder. Choose 'bile duct and gallbladder cancer' from the dropdown list of cancer types.