[Porcelain gallbladder with suspected gallbladder cancer. Case report and review of the literature].

UNLABELLED

Gallbladder calcification known as porcelain gallbladder (PGB) is most often asymptomatic disease developing in consequence of chronic inflammatory process in the course of other gallbladder diseases (gallstone disease). In the past PGB was reported to be associated with carcinoma of gallbladder, with the incidence of 30%, nowadays recent studies suggesting a rate of 6%. Patients with PGB due to malignancy risk undergo , prophylactic cholecystectomy although as recent studies show part of them could avoid it.

AIM

Presentation of a case of a patient with calcification of the gallbladder wall and suspicion of gallbladder cancer and a review of the literature.

A CASE REPORT

A 66-year-old woman was admitted with a diagnosis of PGB and concomitant diseases with a high risk of adverse events. PGB was detected through incidentally 4 months earlier, during the diagnosis of abdominal pain caused by the sigmoid volvulus. Computed tomography revealed enlarged (125mm x 57mm) PGB and abnormal tissue components into the fundus of gallbladder- suspected malignancy. No detected lymphadenopathy and growing cancer into liver, or invading, nearby organs. The patient underwent open extended (radical) cholecystectomy. Gallbladder was excised with fused part of greater omentum and adjacent, wedge-shaped part of liver parenchyma. Lymphadenectomy of the hepatoduodenal ligament and resection of cystic duct stump was also performed. There was no postoperative complication, patient was discharged six days after the surgery. No gallbladder cancer was found in the histopathological examination. There were fund cholecystolithiasis, chronic cholecystitis with hyalinization and calcification of the wall, chronic limphadenitis and glandular epithelium in the stump of the cystic duct.

RESULTS

Patient with PGB and suspicion of gallbladder cancer was treated with open extended cholecystectomy. Histopathological examination has not revealed gallbladder cancer.

CONCLUSIONS

Open extended cholecystectomy has proven to be an effective and safe treatment for a patient with a porcelain gallbladder at high risk of cancer.