World Cholangiocarcinoma Day
On February 15, 2024, we want the world to come together for #WorldCCADay
World CCA Day is an international effort to raise much-needed awareness of CCA, a devastating cancer that occurs in the bile ducts in or outside the liver. This poorly understood and under researched disease is increasing in incidence globally – we believe collaboration is the way forward.
CCA causes a number of vague symptoms, making it very difficult to diagnose, and in some cases leading people to be misdiagnosed with other less serious conditions before receiving the correct diagnosis.
After a long and difficult path to diagnosis, patients and their loved ones face the unknown – a type of cancer they have likely never heard of and know nothing about; in many cases the cancer is advanced, with a poor prognosis; and with limited treatment options available, they don’t know what comes next.
This year, we are calling for a smoother journey to diagnosis for people impacted by cholangiocarcinoma – timely, decisive and supported. It’s time to be #BeClearOnCCA.
We are asking healthcare professionals to take action to improve time to diagnosis:
Clarify – Get to know the signs and symptoms of CCA
Listen – Establish whether the patient’s history indicates that they are at a higher risk of CCA
Explain – Be transparent with the patient on possible diagnoses and next steps
Act – Decisively to establish a diagnosis as quickly as possible
Refer – Patients to a specialist and share resources to support them to understand their diagnosis
