Four Cases of Adenosquamous Carcinoma of the Gallbladder

Kyoei Nonaka, Hiroko Nonaka*, Shinzo Kitahara, Masahiro Isogai, Takao Suzuki, Yukio Tsugu, Setsuo Takeuchi, Muneyuki Yamaguchi**

Second Department of Surgery, First Department of Pathology* and Department of Surgery, Sakura Hospital**, Toho University School of Medicine

The form of carcinoma overwhelming dominant among the cases of gallbladder carcinoma is adenocarcinoma. And adenosquamous carcinoma, in which case adenocarcinoma and squamaous cell carcinoma coexist in the same focus of carcinoma, is relatively rare. Durin the last 13 years of experience at our institution, we conducted dissection of gallbladder carcinoma on 33 patients (1.2%). Since we found 4 cases of adenosquamous carcinoma in total out of the 33 cases: 3 surgical operations and 1 dissection, we examined them in the light of histopathology. As a morphological feature of this disease, the image of transformational area was seen along the boundary dividing the two of the squamous cell carcinoma and the adenocarcinoma, which showed relatively clear distinction between the two. Regarding the growth of squamous cell carcinoma in glandular tissue, we think of the phenomenon that the squamous epithelial moiety is seen for the first time when tissue grows tumorigenic, considering the result that there was no squamous cell metaplasia seen beneath the gallbladder epithelium. In other words, squamous cell carcinoma is formed on the basis of adenocarcinoma. And we think it possible that some undifferentiated basal cells exist to act as intermediary in the process.

Key words
adenosquamous carcinoma of the gallbladder, histological finding

Reprint requests
Kyoei Nonaka Second Department of Surgery, Toho University School of Medicine
6-11-1, Omori-nishi, Ota-ku, Tokyo, 143 JAPAN

Accepted
February 9, 1994

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