Primary adenocarcinoma of the duodenum.

Duodenal adenocarcinoma is an uncommon gastrointestinal neoplasm. Between September 1982 and March 1983, the authors performed two radical operations for this malignancy. A third patient underwent a palliative bypass procedure followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The difficulty the authors encountered in making this diagnosis and the treatment courses chosen reflect the experience of the literature. An aggressive surgical approach in the management of localized duodenal adenocarcinoma is recommended. Five-year survival rates of 20 per cent to 25 per cent are reported after radical surgical procedures.