Source of CC: Background Information about you or family member
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More on this topic. I found a prospective study from 2016 on the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages and the risk of biliary tract cancer. AMMF posted the article as a pdf, so the article can be read in its entirety.
Type 2 diabetes and obesity have been associated with an increased risk for bile duct cancer. The results of this study indicate that the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages (and subsequent elevation in fasting blood glucose levels) may be linked to biliary cancers.
The study included 70, 832 men and women over a period of 13.2 years.
h[url]ttp://ammf.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/JNCI-J-Natl-Cancer-Inst-2016-Larsson-.pdf
[/url]-Karen
Thanks so much for sharing everyone! There is always some risk with long term prescription drugs, and highly agree about too much inflammation in the body can cause various medical conditions. Even if you choose conventional treatment or not, make sure to have a diet that reduces inflammation.
Darla,
You made an interesting point if this condition was lurking in the bile ducts for years before diagnosis. I highly believe that this is the case, as most people don’t get scans for that area or get symptoms to get checked until it’s more severe. My mom was diagnosed in November 2016, and after I did some research noticed she had this condition for 2 years! Inflammation probably made it worse where she got reactive and scheduled for testing.
Also, her primary doctor was never alarmed about the unusual ultrasound 2 years before diagnosis to look deeper into it by sending her to a specialist. He said her liver tests were normal. Also, a regular colonoscopy/endoscopy doesn’t show anything either. Even the doctors get mislead, until there are severe symptoms.Gavin,
Thank you for reminding us all about the risks associated with aspirin. The article I posted references low-dose aspirin, which is recommended by doctors for certain individuals age 50s and up who have risks of heart disease or stroke – which was my case and why my GP recommended it for me.
Incidentally, I was told to stop taking the aspirin while under cancer treatment. Doctors said I could restart low-dose aspirin once my treatments were done and my blood counts normalized but I find when I try to resume, even that tiny dose is irritating to my stomach, I guess possibly a lingering side effect of the chemo and radiation.
I want to add that your posting of research article citations on this board is incredibly helpful -thank you!
Regards, Mary
Just thought I’d throw this in for asprin use. Old piece I know but worth a read.
Long Term Use of Aspirin and the Risk of Gastrointestinal Bleeding
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3086018/
Gavin
Hi all,
I’d just like to chime in here and remind people that there are risk associated with regular asprin use such as stomach ulcers which I can vouch for on that front! So as with all things med related, please consult with the doc or onc’s etc before starting on asprin use for anything.
I will answer the questions posed as well for my dad.
1) High blood pressure for a few years and took medication for it, Perindopril I think it was.
2) See answer No 1
3) Reasonably active for someone that age and weight. Walked lots all of his life and swam twice a week. But he could do with losing a few pounds though!
4) Diet, not the best I guess but not the worst either. Probably not enough fresh fruit and veg.
5) None
6) None
History of heart disease on that side of the family but no cancer really. Non smoker and very moderate intake of alcohol.
Hope some of that is useful.
Hugs,
Gavin
Interesting questions. I am responding about my 66 year old dad
1. High Blood Pressure
2. med for High blood pressure; had to get physicals yearly for his job and there was never an issue with anything else
3. played golf, worked
4. no special diet; he did smoke and drank alcohol
5. no inflammation
6. no cancer in the family at allIn my husbands case there was no inflammation initially. His cholesterol levels were not serious, just boarder line and the statin he was taking was a very low dose. Not sure if the amount makes a difference or if just the fact that it was there could be a factor. So many variables.
I also wondered about statins and cholesterol, since this is the only prescribed daily med I have taken. My understanding is that there are studies showing statins to protect against various cancers, including this one for cholangiocarcinoma.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25808421
There is also research showing low dose aspirin to be protective for cholangiocarcinoma.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26940227
I was taking both a statin and low dose aspirin during the years before my diagnosis, so while it seems they protect others, they did not protect me!
Darla and Debra make an important point, that it may not be the drugs per se but the underlying conditions that are why we take them that play a role, via inflammation. In my own case, I saw in the research various measures of inflammation (neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-lymphocyte ratio) that can be calculated from routine blood count data, and with that info looked at the CBC from my last pre-diagnosis physical. There was no indication of inflammation suggested from these indicators for me. Big disclaimer – I have no background in medical research, so am making a huge assumption that this do-it-yourself calculus was valid!
Regards, Mary
Another thought is that people that take statins assuredly have accumulated cholesterol/plaque in their bodies. This is likely causing inflammation in the body, which can set the stage for development of cancer. Perhaps it’s the high levels of cholesterol that starts the cancer? Just a thought.
Tia, I agree that the involvement of statins seems to be a common thread. I have often wondered if this cancer was lurking in his bile ducts for years and the statins triggered something that activated things and made it so aggressive. Without the statins would it have just stayed dormant? I will never know for sure, but my hope is that in the future questions like this and others will be answered and there will be a better understanding of this disease and earlier detection and treatment.
Interesting that a few have been on statins which have side effects.
My mom took Crestor for her elevated cholesterol which was probably not necessary and discontinued over a year ago due to liver enzymes increasing.Here is a portion of the side effects of this drug which is most likely similar to other statins.
This medication may rarely cause liver problems. If you notice any of the following rare but serious side effects, tell your doctor right away: yellowing eyes/skin, dark urine, severe stomach/abdominal pain, persistent nausea/vomiting.
Some prescription drugs are overprescribed for the profit of pharmaceutical companies and should be monitored very closely and the benefits should outweigh the risks. If possible by diet or lifestyle changes should be the first recommendation.It’s good to understand sources of disease, but I know it’s acceptance and moving forward to the best treatment for CC. I am glad we have this site and growing awareness, hopefully effective clinical trials.
Make sure anti-inflammatory diet is given to your loved one. It seems inflammation is the high source in body. This could be greens, berries, juicing, or supplements and extracts.
Thank you for sharing and taking part in the discussion.
My husband was diagnosed at age 55. He has familial hyper- cholersterolemia (inherited high cholesterol) and has been on statins since his early 20’s. He had two heart attacks 2008/2010 and has stents. He was pretty good about eating a low fat/cholesterol diet. He had polyps removed from his esophagus years ago. He exercised regularly, drank only moderate amounts of wine, and was generally considered by his physicians to be in good health. We recently read that chronic lack of sleep can cause inflammation, and he has a long history of extreme difficulty sleeping through the night. Also, about 20 years ago, he traveled to South Korea (high prevalence of liver flukes) and he is an adventurous eater. So in my husband’s case, there seem to be many different avenues that are suspect.
Debbie
Interesting, and thanks for sharing.
My mom’s are listed below.1. She had anemia long ago, now it’s back because of CC. Mild gallstones, but nothing serious to be removed.
2. Cholesterol and Blood Pressure medication (I would need to find out names) She stopped them about a year ago. I always know prescription drugs cause other problems, and told her not take these and change her diet.
3. Average activity, not a fitness fanatic.
4. Semi healthy diet, occasional red meat, fried food, but balanced with veggies, salads and fish. No alcohol and no smoking.
5. She seemed to have inflammation before diagnosis but more mild. The CC was actually in an ultrasound a couple of years ago, but the primary doctor never followed up by telling her to seek expert opinion until it got worse. It looks like this has been in her body for some time.
6. No liver cancers or diseases in family, only her side of gallstones.I’m just wondering if all cases started with mild inflammation which grew out of control and it happened to be in this region. She did need to improve her diet and lose some weight.
I am answering for my late husband.
Prior to diagnosis he was only on meds for high blood pressure (Lisinopril).
He worked hard on a farm for many years but was inactive most of the prior 5 years.
He ate most anything, except for sugary foods, but I would not consider him a healthy eater.
He was a smoker for 50+ years and had completely quit 3 months before diagnosis.
Heavy alcohol use years ago.
No inflammation but he did suffer from heartburn for several years, after eating acidic foods.
He lost 1 maternal uncle to bladder cancer and one paternal uncle was recently diagnosed with bladder cancer. No other cancer on either side of his family has ever been reported.
He had a flight physical 6 weeks before diagnosis. His hemoglobin was slightly below normal. Unfortunately no chemistry panel was done and doctor only told him to take iron for the low hemoglobin.
12 years before diagnosis he had a severe reaction to a tetanus shot, which caused bi-polar brachial neuritis. Other than that he had been healthy for 59 years.I am answering for my husband who died 8 1/2 years ago at age 62 from CC less than 2 months after first symptoms of any problem.
No other medical conditions other than recently having started with a low dose statin for border line cholesterol.
Average activity level and pretty much ate what ever he wanted with no health or weight issues.
Had not smoked or drank alcohol for many years.No inflammation or GI issues previous to this. No family history of liver or gallbladder disease and his liver enzymes levels were normal until well into the diagnosis.
Adding that he was on an air craft carrier in the waters off of Vietnam and there is some thought that either liver flukes in the fish and water or possibly Agent Orange could be a contributing factor although I have no proof of this and can not substantiate it.
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