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gallbladder polyps
Hello. I'm 35, female. Recently, my ultrasound revealed I have multiple gall bladder polyps. My doctor advise me to take ''CHOLELITHOLYTICS/HEPATIC PROTECTORS'' medicines, 3 times a day for 3 months.
Does this help dissolves polyps?
This discussion is related to Should gallbladder be removed for small polyp(s)?.
Does this help dissolves polyps?
This discussion is related to Should gallbladder be removed for small polyp(s)?.
Btw, I should have mentioned that there is also another community here, Gallbladder Community, that you can cross post into with more people who share in your situation. You are more than welcome in both communities though.
It's good that they detected the polyps, they generally need to be watched. But you should consider getting another opinion - recommending that a medication be taken to dissolve the polyps is not an correct or standrard medical procedure.
Using US to monitor your polyps is the correct step and hopefully another doctor can guide you wrt what else is needed. In general, polyps less than 6 mm in size and that remain stable are considered benign and safe. Anything between 6 mm and 10 mm needs to be watched very closely (3 month intervals) and using a harmonic US procedure (if available). Polyps larger than 10 mm are considered very suspicious, and larger than 15 mm are considered dangerous. All polyps larger than 9 mm and of sessile shape (sorta flat - without a stem) are also considered dangerous.
If a doctor needs to remove a suspicious polyps, then the entire gallbladder is generally removed (cholecystectomy) since this is far safer. By removing the gallbladder along with the polyps, everything is contained and removed without allowing malignant cancer cells to drift off.
We are not doctors here and certainly cannot diagnosis you. So please do seek another doctor's opinion and get the correct followup. Remember that gallbladder cancer is an uncommon malignancy. But gallbladder polyps are relatively common - roughly 5 to 6% of the population has them. But polyps can occasionally become cancerous and should be dealt with in the proper fashion.
Take care.
Using US to monitor your polyps is the correct step and hopefully another doctor can guide you wrt what else is needed. In general, polyps less than 6 mm in size and that remain stable are considered benign and safe. Anything between 6 mm and 10 mm needs to be watched very closely (3 month intervals) and using a harmonic US procedure (if available). Polyps larger than 10 mm are considered very suspicious, and larger than 15 mm are considered dangerous. All polyps larger than 9 mm and of sessile shape (sorta flat - without a stem) are also considered dangerous.
If a doctor needs to remove a suspicious polyps, then the entire gallbladder is generally removed (cholecystectomy) since this is far safer. By removing the gallbladder along with the polyps, everything is contained and removed without allowing malignant cancer cells to drift off.
We are not doctors here and certainly cannot diagnosis you. So please do seek another doctor's opinion and get the correct followup. Remember that gallbladder cancer is an uncommon malignancy. But gallbladder polyps are relatively common - roughly 5 to 6% of the population has them. But polyps can occasionally become cancerous and should be dealt with in the proper fashion.
Take care.
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