Updated 20 January 2006

The most common symptoms in patients presenting with gallbladder cancer are pain, anorexia, nausea and vomiting. Many patients with early invasive gallbladder cancer, however, are asymptomatic or have non-specific symptoms that mimic or are due to cholelithiasis or cholecystitis.

The symptoms of advanced gallbladder cancer are more suggestive of malignant disease and include malaise, weight loss, obstructive jaundice or duodenal obstruction. These symptoms often indicated unresectability. Patients with advanced disease may also present with extra-abdominal metastases, hepatomegaly, a palpable mass, ascites or paraneoplastic syndromes.