Questionnaire on Endoscopic bipolar radiofrequency ablation
Have you or your partner/family member had a procedure called Endoscopic bipolar radiofrequency ablation for treating biliary (bile duct) obstruction caused by cancer?
If so, NICE (National Institute for Health & Care Excellence) would like to hear from you as they develop a piece of clinical guidance on the procedure to help inform practice for doctors and specialists. They are keen to hear of patients’ experience of the procedure by completing a short questionnaire.
Cancer of the bile duct or pancreas can block the channels that carry bile and digestive fluids from the gall bladder and pancreas to the small intestine (malignant biliary obstruction). This can cause jaundice, nausea, bloating and abdominal pain. The blockage is usually treated by inserting small tubes called stents, which help to keep the channels open and draining properly. But these stents can also become blocked.
In this procedure, a thin tube with a camera on the end (endoscope) is passed through the mouth to the blockage, and a guidewire is then passed through the endoscope. Heat energy is then delivered (radiofrequency) to destroy (ablate) the blockage in the channels. This procedure may also be done before inserting stents or to clear blocked stents. The aim is to reduce symptoms.
This survey will be open until 15th March 2024, so please complete it before then.
Thank you!