Palliative treatment with metallic stents for unresectable gallbladder carcinoma involving the portal vein and bile duct.
We report a case of gallbladder carcinoma associated with biliary obstruction and portal vein stenosis caused by massive lymph node metastases. The patient, a 59-year-old woman, was treated with self-expandable metallic stents--a spiral Z-stent in the portal vein, and a Wallstent in the bile duct--and intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy. She returned to work immediately after leaving the hospital, and has been treated with intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy once a week at our outpatient department. At present, she has good quality of life, with patency of both endoprostheses, 8 months after the placement of the metallic stents in the portal vein and the common bile duct. This case shows that portal vein and biliary stenting, together with intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy, can be an effective modality for the palliative treatment of advanced gallbladder carcinoma involving the portal vein and bile duct, to improve quality of life.
Tanaka
J i
Ji
Department of Surgery, Akita University School of Medicine, 1-1-1 Hondo, Akita 010-8543, Japan.
Andoh
H
H
Yoshioka
M
M
Furuya
T
T
Asanuma
Y
Y
Koyama
K
K
D001652:Bile Ducts; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D002758:Cholangiography; D002760:Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D002779:Cholestasis / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005706:Gallbladder Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods*; D011169:Portal Vein / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D015607:Stents