[Gallbladder cancer as unexpected histologic diagnosis following cholecystectomy for cholelithiasis and...

Uncharacteristic symptoms, inadequate early diagnosis, and high malignancy are the major reasons why most of the patients with carcinoma of gallbladder are not admitted for clinical examination until metastasation had begun to involve the liver. So, the majority of authors who have made contributions to the literature are in agreement to the effect that the prognosis is extremely poor for patients with gallbladder carcinoma and that curative therapy is possible only in rare cases. There are only few reports on cases on whom operations could be performed in good time. Curable gallbladder carcinoma is more often than not an absolutely accidental finding obtained in the course of surgical treatment for cholelithiasis. Reported in this paper are four cases in which malignant lesions to mucosa were accidentally discovered by pathologists in histological examination of specimens obtained from cholecystectomy for cholecystolithiasis and cholecystitis. Problems involved in therapeutic action are discussed.