Gallbladder neuroendocrine carcinoma: report of 10 cases and comparision of clinicopathologic features with gallbladder adenocarcinoma.

Few cases of neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) of the gallbladder (GB-NEC) have been reported. Data obtained from the 10 patients with GB-NEC treated in our hospital between January 2008 and December 2012 were retrospectively analyzed and compared with those of 377 patients with gallbladder adenocarcinoma. GB-NEC accounted for 2.2% of all gallbladder cancers. The patients (8 females and 2 males) were 59.0 ± 10.0 years old. Four patients presented mixed adenocarcinoma, while six had pure NEC. Immunohistochemical examinations showed a positive rate of 100% for CgA, NSE, and CK; the positive rates for Syn, EMA, and CD56 were 88.9, 87.5, and 75%, respectively. TNM grades II, IVA, and IVB were found in 1, 2, and 7 patients, respectively. GB-NEC patients showed significantly higher N2 lymphatic metastasis rates than gallbladder adenocarcinoma patients (70.0 vs. 34.0%; P < 0.05). Two patients were treated with radical resection and the remaining 8 with palliative operation. The 1-, 2-, and 3-year survival rates were 20, 10, and 0%, respectively (median survival time, 3.0 m); the 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates for all gallbladder adenocarcinoma patients were 38.0, 31.0, 30.1, and 28.4%, respectively (median survival time, 6.0 m), the difference was statistically significant (P = 0.038). The results demonstrate that GB-NEC was mainly found in aged females and shows high malignancy. Its prognosis is poorer than that of gallbladder adenocarcinoma, and surgical resection combined with TACE, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy could increase patient survival.