Malignant papillomatosis of the common bile duct. A case diagnosed by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.

Bile duct papillomatosis is a rare entity with a high risk of malignant change. We report the case of a 60-year-old man with malignant papillomatosis of the distal common bile duct and a separate carcinoma of ampulla of Vater. The patient had previously undergone surgery for acute cholecystitis and common bile duct calculi. Three months later the patient developed jaundice and fever. An endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography demonstrated multiple filling defects adherent to the wall of the distal common bile duct. Pancreatoduodenectomy was performed with complete resection of the extrahepatic bile duct. Histologic examination showed a multicentric papillary adenocarcinoma of the common bile duct associated with an adenocarcinoma of the ampulla of Vater. The resection margins were free of tumor.