Giant Choledochal Cyst in an Adult at a Teaching Hospital in South-Western Uganda: A Case Report

BACKGROUND: Choledochal cysts are rare congenital malformations characterized by cystic dilatations of the biliary tree. They are more prevalent in East Asian populations, but uncommon in western countries, and scarcely reported in African nations. They are classically diagnosed in children, and only 20–30% of cases are diagnosed in adulthood. Giant choledochal cysts are those with sizes exceeding 10cm, and are extremely rare with a few reported in the literature, thus the need for this case report. CASE: A 25-year-old Ugandan woman presented with an 8-month history of abdominal pain, jaundice and progressively increasing right upper quadrant abdominal mass. She underwent trans-abdominal ultrasonography that revealed a large, well-defined, echo-free mass in the right upper quadrant, extending to the lumbar region. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) revealed a huge thin-walled, cystic mass rising from the right wall of common hepatic duct, displacing the surrounding structures and no visible common bile duct. Complete cyst excision of a giant choledochal cyst type IVa was performed without decompression, in addition to cholecystectomy and reconstruction with hepaticojejunostomy and jejunojejunostomy anastomoses. CONCLUSION: Giant choledochal cysts are a very rare pathology worldwide. Diagnosis can still be made using ultrasound and CT where more advanced imaging modalities like endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) are not available. Complete surgical resection of giant choledochal cysts is surgically challenging, but essential to relieve symptoms and prevent malignant transformation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case in the literature, of a giant choledochal cyst that was successfully treated in an African nation.