Gallbladder polyp- wait and watch

[Emilycheltenham]

Has anyone else been previously or is currently on 'wait and watch' of a gallbladder polyp where they have to have regular scans to see if the polyp has grown??

My polyp showed some growth at my last scan and I am so so anxious, as the thought of surgery terrifies me.

The surgeon I spoke to privately said to just continue watching and waiting as my polyp is only 5mm and may not continue to grow to a point where it needs anything doing.

I don't know how to stop thinking about it though.

Can anyone help??

Hi I just need advice here. So basically I went for my second ultrasound on Saturday after 6 months. I was told by the sonographer that my polyp has not changed. So I left and was told she was happy.
so I went to the gp yesterday for a follow up and he said your gallbladder polyp has not changed and there are no concerns.
and will be monitoring me again in 6 months then a year after. So I asked for a copy of my radiology I was given it.
I went home and read the reports one report said my first ultrasound showed my polyp is measuring 3.1mm and the second ultrasound report said 3.3mm!
I then phoned the gp back and demanded to see a doctor because this was not explained to me.. all I knew it had not changed and remains 3.1mm so then if that’s the case why did the doctor not tell me it was measured 3.3mm. I managed to get an appointment and it was a different doctor told her everything. So she said she will email radiology and point my concerns out to them. And see if radiology made a human error… with measurements and if they are still happy. this is the message I got… (below) but nice guidance say if grown by 2mm during follow up then gallbladder needs to be removed! But apparently by the text I got today there is no concern! I’m so confused! 👇

Following our conversation yesterday I have heard back from radiology
They are not concerned.
They would only arrange different management if the lesion was to increase in size to 10mm. (Your polyp was 3.3mm)

I hope this helps to reassure you. there are no concerning features.
Your next scan will be in 6 months.

Thanks, Dr Howell

Anyone?

The difference between your first scan and second scan is only 0.2mm which would explain why they are not concerned. If it grew by 2mm then the second scan would show a measurement of 5.1mm

ok so my first scan was 3.1mm
my second scan was 3.3mm
so that’s 2mm in growth? Right?

@ByLovingGuide when we measure things on ultrasound scans, we are manually moving a rollerball to where we think the edges of things are- so 0.2mm difference is incredibly close and within user/ scan variation. It’s very subjective. It doesn’t necessarily represent growth.

We monitor gallbladder polyps as no one really knows their natural history; it’s not like eg bowel polyps where we know that every colon cancer once started life as a smaller polyp, so it’s worth removing them when you find them in the colon.

If gallbladder polyps are small, asymptomatic and not doing much after 2 years we stop following them.

if they’re larger (above 10mm, or 8mm with symptoms and/ or risk factors) we recommend surgery.

No, that's 0.2mm in growth. Two tenths of a millimetre.

Yours measured 3 millimetres and one tenth of a millimetre originally.

It's grown by two tenths of a millimetre and is still only 3 millimetres.

This is helpful info, thank you.

My first scan when the polyp was discovered showed it to be around 3mm...my second scan closer to 5mm.

I had a third scan after this with a consultant radiologist as I was concerned about the growth ..... she said that she found it to measure between 3.5mn and 4.6 depending on the angle of her hand and the position I was in.
She said she could easily have recorded it as being 3.5mm, but she made it as big as possible to get the 4.6 measurement.

For this reason, she said that the first scan may have used the smaller measurementand therefore the rate of growth may not be as big as it seems.

How likely/common is this in your experience?

I've got another follow up scan in a few months.

Drs aren't worried but I've been very anxious

@Emilycheltenham variation like this is hugely common. It depends so much on who’s doing the scan, the angle we catch the polyp at, the machine…they all vary. Unlike CT scans which give a set of images that anyone can then look at and measure things on, ultrasound is utterly operator dependent. It’s much more of a dark art than other imaging techniques!

Please try not to worry- much easier said than done I know. We scan a lot of patients for just this reason. And the surgery is generally straightforward and done as a daycase with keyhole surgery if it does come to that.

Thanks so much for your reply that’s helped. My maths as you can tell is rubbish 🫣

Thanks so much that helps you explained it better than my own gp. It’s really reassuring. Can I ask do you know if going to the gym and having a heathier life style can stop the gallbladder polyp from growing?

Gym and healthier lifestyle will be fantastic for your overall health, but unlikely to specifically have any effect on the gallbladder polyp in my opinion