What Are Gallbladder Polyps?

What Are Gallbladder Polyps?

The gallbladder is an organ that does not have many functions and it is not even important for survival, but it can cause problems. Problems occur when either gallstones or gallbladder polyps form and become too large. This may sound scary, but having polyps does not necessarily mean that any adverse effects will be experienced or that any other conditions will develop. Of course, any polyps need to be examined because there is also a slim chance that they are cancerous.

Having gallbladder polyps is not an uncommon thing and fact is that around 5% of organs have these formations. A polyp is a growth or a lesion that originates from the walls of the gallbladder and they are nothing other than mucous membranes which stay and build up in the organ. Normally the body takes care of these tissues, but nonetheless the gallbladder is prone for their formation and especially in people who already have gallstones. There are five main kinds of gallbladder polyps that form and each of these growths can be identified by having an ultrasound specialist take a look.

Almost all of the people who have gallbladder polyps do not experience any kind of symptoms or pain. Since they are usually asymptomatic there is no urgent need to act on them. However, if polyps grow to a size of half an inch or more, then effects may be experienced. Those effects, though, are from gallstones and not the polyps themselves. Whenever polyps in the gallbladder are discovered, it is incidentally and not intentionally.

Having these growths is normally not a reason to worry, but large sized polyps may also be a sign of cancer and therefore it is necessary to have them examined by a specialist. Especially patients that also have problems with the liver and biliary ducts need to worry that the gallbladder polyps may be malignant. If polyps become large and there is a possibility of cancer, even if benign, then there is only one real solution. That would be to just simply remove the entire gallbladder. This is not a problem and a human can function normal and fine without this organ.