[Adenosquamous and squamous carcinoma of the gallbladder]

Squamous and adenosquamous carcinomas of the gallbladder have poor prognosis. Because these tumors are silent in the initial stage, they are generally diagnosed in advanced stages.

We performed a retrospective observational study of five patients with squamous or adenosquamous carcinoma of the gallbladder. There were two women and three men with a mean age of 71 years (range, 68-75). All patients showed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and weight lost (4-8 kg). One patient presented with acute cholecystitis. None of the patients had jaundice and all had gallstone disease.

Surgery was performed in all patients. Extended cholecystectomy was performed in three patients, cholecystectomy and bile drainage in one patient, and colonic bypass and cholecystectomy in the remaining patient. Pathologic analysis revealed epidermoid carcinoma in two patients and adenosquamous carcinoma in three patients. Two patients were treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. All died within 6 months of surgery.

In both histological types of gallbladder carcinoma, treatment depends on the grade of local and regional invasion and tumor spread at diagnosis.