Primary carcinoma of the gallbladder

Forty four patients with primary carcinoma of the gallbladder diagnosed during 12 years were reviewed. Nineteen patients had histologically proven cancer and the remaining 25 patients were diagnosed by laparotomy and/or the several diagnostic procedures. The female to male ratio was 1.6 to 1. The mean age was 65.7 years in resected cases and 63.5 years in unresected cases. The mean survival times in curative, noncurative resection and unresected cases were 49.8, 7.9 and 2.9 months, respectively. Although early diagnosis is difficult due to the lack of specific symptoms and signs, our results suggested that the measurement of serum CA 19-9 is a useful marker for detection and ultrasonography is helpful in the early assessment of disease. These tests, together with more aggressive surgery, may extend the survival of patients with primary carcinoma of the gallbladder.