Rational therapeutic strategy for T2 gallbladder carcinoma based on tumor spread

To evaluate the adequacy of surgical treatment of T2 gallbladder carcinoma (GBCa) according to tumor spread in the subserosal layer.

A series of 84 patients with GBCa were treated at Saga University Hospital, Japan between April 1989 and October 2008. The tumor stage was graded according to the TNM staging for GBCa from the American Joint Committee on Cancer Manual 6th edition. Tumor staging revealed 30 patients with T2 tumors. T2 GBCa was divided into three groups histologically by the extent of tumor spread in the subserosal layer, using a score of ss minimum (ss min), ss medium (ss med) or ss massive (ss mas).

For ss min GBCa, there was no positive pathological factor and patient survival was satisfactory with simple cholecystectomy, with or without extra-hepatic bile duct resection. For ss med GBCa, some pathological factors, h-inf (hepatic infiltration), ly (lymphatic invasion) and n (lymph node metastasis), were positive. For ss mas GBCa, there was a high incidence of positive pathological factors. The patient group with extra-hepatic bile duct resection with D2 lymph node dissection (BDR with D2) and those with S4a5 hepatectomy had significantly better survival rates.

We suggest that radical surgery is not necessary for ss min GBCa, and partial hepatectomy and BDR are necessary for both ss med and ss mas GBCa.