A retrospective audit of gall bladder histopathology following cholecystectomy

Gall bladder carcinoma is one of the common cancer of biliary tree which have rapid progression and high mortality rate. It is difficult to differentiate early stage of gall bladder carcinoma from chronic cholecystitis as it is mostly asymptomatic. It is well accepted that good prognosis and prolonged survival can be achieved only with detection at an early stage. Gall bladder specimens removed for clinically benign conditions for histopathological examination has been topic of debate. The reference retrospective study was carried out at tertiary care hospital for period of 6 years with objective to identify the incidence of unsuspected gallbladder carcinoma. These cholecystectomy specimens received by our histopathology laboratory to analyze their clinico-pathological features. Incidentally detected gallbladder malignancy cases comprised 0.87% from a total of 803 case records. Most patients were found to be in early, surgically resectable stage of their disease. We recommend that in India and other countries with relatively high incidences of gall bladder carcinoma, all cholecystectomy specimens should be submitted to histopathology laboratory, which is in support with current literature. It could help us to treat cases at potentially curable stage if detected early.