Surgical treatment for carcinoma of the extrahepatic bile duct

Eighty-six patients with primary extrahepatic bile duct carcinoma operated on in the Second Department of Surgery at Nagasaki University Hospital during a recent 13.5-year period were reviewed. The patients were divided into five groups depending upon the site of the tumor. The operative mortality, resectability, postoperative survival period, and five-year survival rate in each group were studied. The lower third group had the highest resectability, lowest operative mortality and longest post operative survival period. The hepatic duct, the upper third and the extended groups, however, showed extremely poor results. The pathological features of these three groups are discussed here and an operative procedure for resection of the tumor is proposed. We emphasize that the development of methods of early diagnosis is necessary, and recommend aggressive surgical treatment for tumors of the hepatic duct, upper third, and extended groups.