Gastroenterology

The gastrointestinal system consists of the esophagus, stomach, pancreas, liver, gall bladder, bile ducts and the intestines. Many diseases occur and can affect any of these organs. Some of the chronic diseases include:

• Peptic ulcer disease
• Esophageal varices and bleeding
• Fatty liver and liver cirrhosis
• Pancreatic cancer
• Liver cancer
• Constipation and diarrhea
• Piles, fissures and fistula
• Colon cancer

To get the right Gastroenterology treatment in India you can get the best of the services with Mediflam assuring the required guidance and treatment. 

Liver cancer and pancreatic cancer are by far the most life-threatening cancers of the gastrointestinal system. The other serious cancers are gall bladder cancer, stomach cancer and colon cancer.

The blood vessels and the bile ducts form complex structures in the liver and thus the treatment for liver cancer becomes very difficult. Primary liver cancer is difficult to diagnose and secondary liver cancer already spreads to an extent that it becomes fairly difficult to manage. The treatments available are chemotherapy, chemoembolization which involves giving chemotherapy directly to the liver, surgical resection and photodynamic therapy. 

The staging system of liver cancer is based on Barcelona-Clinic-Liver Cancer (BCLC) classification and the prognosis is based on Child-Pugh score. The stages are:

Stage 0: This is a very early stage with the presence of a single nodule of size less than 2 cm. This can be treated by ablation.

Stage A or early stage: It involves single or less than 3 nodules equal to or less than 3 cm. The treatment includes resection or transplantation or ablation. 

Stage B or intermediate stage: This involves multiple nodes. The preferred mode of therapy is chemoembolization. 

Stage C or advanced stage: Includes portal invasion. Preferred mode of therapy includes systemic therapies. 

Stage D or terminal stage: This is the last stage of cancer and the best that can be done is supportive care.

Liver cancers are very difficult to treat because of the complex structures of the blood vessels and bile ducts. The outcome of the treatment depends on the stage of the cancer. India is home to some of the best oncology hospitals and oncologists who have a vast amount of experience in their respective fields. The best Gastroenterology treatment in India assures necessary procedures and utmost professionalism are practiced while dealing with cancer patients. They are given psychological and social support as these are trying times and the patient needs very strong moral support. 

It is the degeneration of the liver where the liver is damaged and replaced by a scar tissue. It is usually caused by chronic alcohol consumption and the damage is irreversible. The ultimate treatment is liver transplant.

Hepatitis refers to the inflammation of the liver and is caused by different types of viruses. Different types of hepatitis are Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. Hepatitis can lead to liver cirrhosis and cancer. Vaccines are available against different types of hepatitis and it is advisable to take the same.

The most dangerous type of hepatitis is hepatitis B. The main form of treatment is vaccination. Nutrition can play a great role in preventing the progression of hepatitis. Abstinence from alcohol is very important. Medications that are used for treating viruses can be taken. Also immunomodulators that can decrease the viral load can also be taken.

Hepatitis is the inflammation of the liver and it is mostly prevented by the use of vaccination. The hepatitis treatment modalities used are nutritional aspects, abstinence from alcohol and the use of medications like antivirals and immunomodulators. India is home to some of the best gastroenterology hospitals and gastroenterologists who have a vast experience in their respective fields and can cater to some of the serious diseases encountered in the gastrointestinal system.

Alcohol can cause stomach ulcers. The biggest threat is to the liver. Alcohol can cause fatty liver or liver cirrhosis. This can further lead to liver cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the leading cause of deaths due to cancer in the world and is very difficult to treat as it is usually not diagnosed in early stages. The most common system used to stage pancreatic cancer is AJCC (American Joint Committee on Cancer) TNM system, which is based on 3 main pieces of information:

• The extent of the tumor (T): How large is the tumor and has it grown outside the pancreas into nearby blood vessels
• Spread to nearby lymph nodes (N): Has the cancer spread to nearby lymph nodes and how many of them if yes?
• Metastasis to distant sites (M): Has the cancer spread to distant lymph nodes or organs?

Pancreatic cancer is a difficult cancer to treat and has a high rate of mortality. The outcome of the treatment is highly dependent on the stage of the cancer when it is diagnosed. India is home to some of the best oncology hospitals and oncologists who have a vast amount of experience in their respective fields. The best treatment procedures and utmost professionalism are practiced while dealing with cancer patients. They are given psychological and social support as these are trying times and the patient needs very strong moral support. 

Ayurveda is an ancient scientific medical discipline that was born in India and has been in practice since 5000 years. It believes in dealing with the root cause of the disease and not just alleviating the symptoms. Chronic diseases like Peptic Ulcer Disease can be treated by this method and the treatment is not common for all the patients but varies from patient to patient depending on the individual makeup

More than 95% of the biliary tract disease is attributable to gallstones. It afflicts 10%-20% of adult populations in high income countries. The two major types of gallstones are cholesterol stones and pigment stones. Cholesterol stones are formed when there is high cholesterol which cannot be converted into micelles by bile. The excess cholesterol nucleates into solid cholesterol monohydrate crystals. Four conditions appear to contribute to formation of cholesterol gallstones: (1) supersaturation of bile with cholesterol; (2) hypomotility of the gallbladder; (3) accelerated cholesterol crystal nucleation; and (4) hypersecretion of mucus in the gallbladder, which traps the nucleated crystals, leading to accretion of more cholesterol and the appearance of macroscopic stones.

Pigment gallstones are complex mixtures of insoluble calcium salts of unconjugated bilirubin and inorganic calcium salts. Disorders that are associated with elevated levels of unconjugated bilirubin in bile increase the risk of developing pigment stones. These include chronic haemolytic anemia, severe ileal dysfunction or bypass, and bacterial contamination of the biliary tree, Unconjugated bilirubin is normally a minor component of bile, but it increases when infection of the biliary tract leads to release of microbial β-glucuronidases, which hydrolyze bilirubin glucuronides. Thus, infection of the biliary tract with Escherichia coli, Ascaris lumbricoides, or the liver fluke C. sinensis increases the likelihood of pigment stone formation. In hemolytic anemias, the secretion of conjugated bilirubin into bile increases. About 1% of bilirubin glucuronides are deconjugated in the biliary tree, and in the setting of chronically increased secretion of conjugated bilirubin, a sufficiently large amount of deconjugated bilirubin is generated to allow pigment stones to form.

Gall bladder cancer is the most common malignancy of the extrahepatic biliary tract. The most important risk factor for gall bladder cancer is the presence of gallstones. However, only 1% to 2% patients with gallstones develop gall bladder cancer. The most common cause is genetic mutation.

• Stage I. At this stage, gallbladder cancer is confined to the inner layers of the gallbladder.
• Stage II. This stage of gallbladder cancer has grown to invade the outer layer of the gallbladder.
• Stage III. At this stage, gallbladder cancer has grown to invade one or more nearby organs, such as the liver, small intestine or stomach. The gallbladder cancer may have spread to nearby lymph nodes.
• Stage IV. The latest stage of gallbladder cancer includes large tumors that involve multiple nearby organs and tumors of any size that have spread to distant areas of the body.

Get the gastroenterology treatment in India with the best of medical services offered by Mediflam. 

The treatment of gall bladder cancer depends on the stage when the diagnosis is done. Surgery is the preferred option in the early stage cancer. In the later stages, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or a combination of both can be used. India is home to some of the best oncology hospitals and oncologists who have a vast amount of experience in their respective fields. The best treatment procedures and utmost professionalism are practiced while dealing with cancer patients. They are given psychological and social support as these are trying times and the patient needs very strong moral support.  

The common cancers of the gastrointestinal system are:

• Esophageal cancer
• Colorectal cancer
• Pancreatic cancer
• Liver cancer
• Stomach cancer
• Gall bladder cancer
• Anal cancer