A Case of Successful Curative Resection Following Downsizing Chemotherapy in Initially Unresectable Locally Advanced Gallbladder Carcinoma

A 58-year-old woman was referred to our hospital with high fever and right upper abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) revealed a bulky tumor of the gallbladder with liver invasion, metastases to para-aortic lymph nodes, and extensive infiltration to Glisson's sheath. The tumor was initially considered to be unresectable locally advanced gallbladder carcinoma with inflammation, and she received 6 courses of chemotherapy with gemcitabine plus cisplatin. Subsequently, the inflammation was extinguished, and CT showed the main tumor shrunk and the Glisson's sheath infiltration disappeared; however, a liver metastasis existed in segment 5. Thus, S4a plus S5 hepatic segmentectomy with extrahepatic bile duct resection and regional and para-aortic lymphadenectomy was performed. The pathological diagnosis was pT3a, pN1, pM1 (Hep, LYM), fStage â £B. Curative resection was then performed. If selected according to their response to downsizing chemotherapy, conversion therapy might therefore be an effective multidisciplinary treatment for patients with initially unresectable locally advanced gallbladder carcinoma.