Statistics About Bile Duct Cancer

In the US, Asian-Americans are the most likely to get bile duct cancer.

Some people use statistical reports to try to figure out their chance of getting cancer. Or they use them to try to figure out their chance of being cured. Statistics show what happens with large groups of people. Because no two people are alike, statistics cannot be used to know or predict what will happen to a particular person.

These are some 2009 statistics about bile duct cancer, from the American Cancer Society:

• About 22,620 people will be diagnosed with primary liver or bile duct cancer this year.

• Asian Americans are the most likely to get bile duct cancer. They are also more likely to die of it. This is partly because a parasitic infection of the bile ducts is more common in Asia. This parasite raises the risk for bile duct cancer.

• Men of all ethnic groups are more likely to get bile duct cancer than women. More than twice as many men as women will develop the cancer.

• People who have distal bile duct cancer that is found early have a five-year survival rate that ranges from about 15 to 40 percent. Only about 20 percent of bile duct cancer is found at an early stage. The survival rate is better if the cancer is found at an early stage, before it has spread.