In a significant boost for global oncology research, surgeons from Lucknow's King George's Medical University (KGMU) have played a key role in an international study spearheaded by the University of Cambridge in the UK. The landmark research has developed a novel tool designed to help doctors assess the risk of gallbladder cancer spreading to lymph nodes, thereby aiding critical treatment decisions without incurring additional expenses for patients.
KGMU's Vital Role in a Global Effort
The Department of Surgery at KGMU participated as part of the OMEGA Study Investigators, a worldwide consortium of medical centres. The Indian contribution was led by surgeons Prof Akshay Anand and Prof Abhinav Arun Sonkar. Patient data and treatment records from KGMU were integrated into the overall analysis, enriching the study's findings with insights from the Indian population, where gallbladder cancer presents a notable health challenge.
The Scope and Findings of the OMEGA Study
Published in the year 2025, the extensive study analysed a vast dataset comprising 3,676 gallbladder cancer patients. These patients had undergone surgery between 2010 and 2020 across a network of 133 hospitals in 41 countries. From this robust analysis, researchers successfully created a scoring system named OMEGA-NOPPS.
This innovative tool is engineered to estimate the likelihood of lymph node involvement in gallbladder cancer. Crucially, it provides valuable risk assessment even for some early-stage cases, where such evaluation is complex. The researchers emphasize that this tool can directly assist surgeons and oncologists in planning personalized treatment strategies, all without the need for extra diagnostic tests or increasing the financial burden on healthcare systems and patients.
Indian Hospitals in the International Spotlight
Apart from KGMU in Lucknow, four other premier Indian medical institutions contributed to this global research effort. The participating centres from India were:
- Tata Medical Centre in Kolkata
- All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Rishikesh
- Synergy Institute of Medical Sciences in Dehradun
- Rela Hospital in Chennai
The involvement of these five hospitals underscores India's growing role in high-impact, collaborative medical research that addresses cancers with high prevalence in the region. The development of the OMEGA-NOPPS tool is a promising step towards more precise and accessible cancer care, potentially improving outcomes for patients worldwide.
