Objective: Gallbladder cancer (GBC) is a tumor with poor prognosis, which is rarely seen and challenging to diagnose. Gallbladder cancer is followed by stomach, colon and pancreatic cancers among gastrointestinal system cancers with different geographical distribution. There are different approaches in surgical treatment. Thus, our clinic’s experience of GBC has been evaluated retrospectively.
Materials and Methods: Patients with GBC who were referred to Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine between 2003 and July 2018 were evaluated concerning their demographic characteristics, symptoms, diagnostic methods, surgical treatment, morbidity, mortality and follow-up results.
Results: Of the 1979 cholecystectomy performed in our clinic, 40 (2.0%) had GBC. Of all cases, 21 were male, 19 were female and the mean age was 67 (56–94). The most common symptom was abdominal pain (30%) and jaundice (15%). Abdominal ultrasonography, CT (computerized tomography) or MR (magnetic resonance imaging) were performed for diagnostic purposes. In addition to the diagnosis of cholelithiasis or cholecystitis, 10 (25%) of these patients had asymmetric wall thickness, CA 19–9 height or a tumor mass in the gallbladder, suggesting malignancy in preoperative examinations. Adenocarcinoma and subtypes were found in 33 cases and other malignant types in three cases and dysplasia in four cases after pathologic evaluation. In the follow-up, 31 cases were lost in 0–48 (mean 14.4) months. Nine cases have been monitored for 0–48 (mean 27) months as they are alive.
Conclusion: GBC is a complicated disease with poor prognosis, which is usually diagnosed post-operative, despite surgical treatment.