A 70-year-old woman presents with progressive jaundice, right upper quadrant pain, and an abdominal mass. MRCP shows a hilar biliary stricture involving the right and left hepatic ducts up to their secondary branches with no common duct involvement. This is classified as Bismuth-Corlette Type:

• A Type IV ✓
• B Type I
• C Type II
• D Type IIIa

Explanation

Bismuth-Corlette classification of hilar cholangiocarcinoma (Klatskin tumour): Type I = below confluence; Type II = at confluence involving both hepatic ducts; Type IIIa = extends into right secondary branches; Type IIIb = extends into left secondary branches; Type IV = involves both right and left secondary branches (or multifocal). The described case — extending into secondary branches bilaterally — is Type IV, typically unresectable or requiring bilateral hepatectomy and transplantation considerations.

Reference: Bailey & Love's Short Practice of Surgery, 27th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.