Liver transplant is not a standard therapy for cholangiocarcinoma; complete surgical resection of the tumor is currently the treatment of choice. Palliative options offer only short-term survival. After initial recurrence rates after liver transplant for cholangiocarcinoma in the 1990s were un-acceptably high, cholangiocarcinoma has been regarded widely as a contraindication to liver transplant. Ubiquitous organ shortage further supports this conviction. Careful patient selection and a rigorous perioperative treatment by radio-chemotherapy have produced some impressive survival data in specialized transplant centers in recent years. Although the graft shortage is aggravating in the Western world, the issue of liver transplant as a treatment for irresectable cho-langiocarcinoma is being discussed. This review article provides an update and overview on the current status of liver transplant as a potential option for patients with irresectable cholangiocarcinoma.
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