Faculty mentor/PI email address
jim010@aol.com
Is your research Teaching and Learning based?
1
Keywords
Klatskin tumor, obstructive jaundice, painless jaundice, biliary obstruction, CA 19-9
Date of Presentation
5-6-2026 12:00 AM
Poster Abstract
We present a 68-year-old female with no significant oncologic history who presented to
the emergency department with a two –week history of progressive jaundice and diarrhea.
Systematic ED evaluation revealed marked hyperbilirubinemia (total bilirubin 22.3 mg/dL), a
cholestatic laboratory pattern, and multimodal imaging demonstrating multifocal hepatic
masses, a porta hepatis soft tissue mass, and biliary ductal dilatation consistent with hilar cholangiocarcinoma (Klatskin tumor) with metastatic disease.
A CA 19-9 marker was markedly elevated at 379 U/mL. The patient was admitted and she underwent successful biliary decompression via ERCP with stent placement. Outpatient oncologic therapy was initiated. This case highlights the critical importance of maintaining a broad differential for painless jaundice in the emergency setting with early imaging and tumor marker evaluation.
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences | Neoplasms
Included in
The Klatskin Tumor: A Tumor at the Liver’s Crossroads
We present a 68-year-old female with no significant oncologic history who presented to
the emergency department with a two –week history of progressive jaundice and diarrhea.
Systematic ED evaluation revealed marked hyperbilirubinemia (total bilirubin 22.3 mg/dL), a
cholestatic laboratory pattern, and multimodal imaging demonstrating multifocal hepatic
masses, a porta hepatis soft tissue mass, and biliary ductal dilatation consistent with hilar cholangiocarcinoma (Klatskin tumor) with metastatic disease.
A CA 19-9 marker was markedly elevated at 379 U/mL. The patient was admitted and she underwent successful biliary decompression via ERCP with stent placement. Outpatient oncologic therapy was initiated. This case highlights the critical importance of maintaining a broad differential for painless jaundice in the emergency setting with early imaging and tumor marker evaluation.