Metastatic Carcinoma of the Gallbladder after a Renal Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

The gallbladder is rarely the site of distant metastases and in most cases malignant melanoma is the primary tumor.

We report a case of a 64-year-old man with a gallbladder metastasis secondary to a renal cell carcinoma. Renal cell carcinoma has a tendency toward metastatic disease, the most notable features of this tumor being its unusual pattern of metastatic disease.

Pre-operative imaging studies are often futile in the differentiation between primary and secondary tumors of the gallbladder. Since primary tumors of the gallbladder often coexist with gallstones, a polypoid lesion in an acalculous gallbladder is more consistent with metastasis than a primary tumour.

If feasible, surgical resection of the gallbladder is mandatory because it could guarantee better chances of survival for patients with metastatic renal carcinoma.

Key Words:

• Gallbladder
• metastasis
• renal cell carcinoma

Additional information

Notes on contributors

J. Closset

J. Closset Medicosurgical Department of Gastro-Enterology Erasme Hospital Route de Lennick 808 B-1070 Brussels, Belgium Tel.: [phone] Fax: [phone] E-mail: [email protected]