Best Biliary & Pancreatic Surgeon in Chattogram - Book Appointment

Preparing for HPB Surgery

In a tertiary setting, preparation is systematic — match it with your own thoroughness. Bring every scan with its images (ultrasound, CT, MRI, MRCP), all laboratory work including liver function, tumor markers where done, cardiac and diabetes assessments, and a complete medicine list; anticoagulants, antiplatelets, and metformin-type drugs have specific stop rules before major HPB operations. If you were referred from Cox's Bazar, the hill tracts, Cumilla, or Noakhali, bring the referral letter and the original reports — the Chattogram team will re-review the images themselves. Ask whether any further staging is needed before a surgery date is fixed; in HPB oncology, operating before complete staging is a classic error. Clarify fasting, blood donor requirements for major resections, and ICU plans after surgery. Arrange an attendant for the full admission — tertiary HPB operations are never day cases.

Questions Worth Asking Your Surgeon

Ask whether your disease is benign or malignant and what evidence supports the call. Ask if the lesion is resectable — removable with clear margins — and what the scans show about vessels, lymph nodes, and distant spread. Ask whether surgery comes first or whether chemotherapy or stenting should precede it; sequencing decisions define outcomes in HPB cancer. Ask about the specific operation planned, its duration, expected blood loss and transfusion likelihood, ICU stay, and total hospital time. Ask for the surgeon's and the center's experience with this exact procedure — volume genuinely matters in HPB surgery, and you are entitled to ask. Ask what follow-up and surveillance the operation commits you to, and who coordinates it if you live outside the city.

Common Biliary and Pancreatic Procedures

At tertiary level, the HPB repertoire is complete. Laparoscopic and open cholecystectomy cover the full range of gallbladder disease, including difficult gallbladders with dense inflammation. Bile duct stones are managed by ERCP with sphincterotomy and stone extraction, or by surgical exploration; strictures — benign or malignant, hilar or distal — are treated by percutaneous or endoscopic stenting, or by hepaticojejunostomy and other bilioenteric reconstructions. Liver surgery includes non-anatomical and anatomical resections, from wedge excisions to hemihepatectomies, planned with volumetric CT to leave adequate future liver remnant. Pancreatic surgery spans enucleations, distal pancreatectomies with or without splenectomy, central pancreatectomies, and pancreaticoduodenectomy — the Whipple — with its reconstruction of pancreatic, biliary, and gastric continuity. Minimally invasive approaches are selectively applied where evidence supports them. For unresectable disease, the palliative toolkit — biliary and duodenal stenting, celiac plexus neurolysis for pain, and surgical bypass — focuses on quality of life.

After Surgery: Recovery and Follow-Up

Recovery after tertiary HPB surgery is a managed process, not a single event. Expect an ICU stay of a day or more after major resections, then step-down care with drains, physiotherapy, and dietitian-guided feeding; full recovery from a Whipple or major hepatectomy is measured in weeks to months. After gallbladder surgery, the course is far shorter — days to full activity. Across the spectrum, report fever, increasing abdominal pain or distension, jaundice, wound issues, black stools, or persistent vomiting immediately; complications in HPB surgery are best handled early by the operating team. Your histopathology report is the single most important document after cancer surgery — it sets the stage, decides adjuvant chemotherapy, and schedules surveillance imaging. Keep a personal file with every scan, report, and discharge summary; HPB follow-up lasts years, and organized records make each review productive. If you live outside Chattogram, confirm how reviews will be shared with your local doctor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is HPB surgery available in Chattogram or must I go to Dhaka?

Chattogram's tertiary hospitals, led by the medical college hospital, practice dedicated HPB surgery — including liver resection and pancreatic surgery — so many complex cases are treated here without a Dhaka trip.

What is a hilar bile duct tumor?

A cancer at the junction where the right and left bile ducts meet (a Klatskin tumor). It causes progressive jaundice and needs specialized imaging, often stenting, and assessment at a tertiary HPB unit for resectability.

How is pancreatic cancer staged?

With contrast CT or MRI, chest imaging, tumor markers such as CA 19-9, and sometimes diagnostic laparoscopy — establishing whether the tumor is resectable, borderline, or advanced before any treatment plan.

What does the Whipple procedure involve?

Removal of the pancreatic head, duodenum, gallbladder, part of the bile duct, and sometimes part of the stomach, followed by reconstruction — a 5-to-8-hour operation performed by specialized teams with ICU backup.

Can liver tumors be removed?

When confined to resectable segments with adequate remaining liver and no distant spread, yes — partial hepatectomy offers the best chance of cure, decided after volumetric planning and team review.

How do I choose an HPB surgeon in Chattogram?

DoctorBD24 surgeon profiles list qualifications, hospital attachments, and chamber schedules for Chattogram, helping you verify subspecialty HPB training and experience.