Endoscopic bile duct drainage for bile duct cancer: the viewpoints of endoscopists-

Abstract

Regarding endoscopic biliary drainage, we described the concept of drainage methods, details of procedures, and trouble shooting from the viewpoints of endoscopists. The gold standard for bile duct stenosis due to cholangiocarcinoma is endoscopic transpapillary bile duct drainage, not EUS-BD, not PTBD. We emphasized that bile duct drainage is just a palliative treatment and not a major treatment. So, we should consider the overall cancer treatment for patients not only biliary drainage.