Synchronous primary duodenal papillary adenocarcinoma and gallbladder carcinoma: A case report and review of literature

BACKGROUND: Synchronous primary cancers (SPCs) have become increasingly frequent over the past decade. However, the coexistence of duodenal papillary and gallbladder cancers is rare, and such cases have not been previously reported in the English literature. Here, we describe an SPC case with duodenal papilla and gallbladder cancers and its diagnosis and successful management. CASE SUMMARY: A 68-year-old Chinese man was admitted to our hospital with the chief complaint of dyspepsia for the past month. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the abdomen performed at the local hospital revealed dilatation of the bile and pancreatic ducts and a space-occupying lesion in the duodenal papilla. Endoscopy revealed a tumor protruding from the duodenal papilla. Pathological findings for the biopsied tissue revealed tubular villous growth with moderate heterogeneous hyperplasia. Surgical treatment was selected. Macroscopic examination of this surgical specimen revealed a 2-cm papillary tumor and another tumor protruding by 0.5 cm in the gallbladder neck duct. Intraoperative rapid pathology identified adenocarcinoma in the gallbladder neck duct and tubular villous adenoma with high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and local canceration in the duodenal papilla. After an uneventful postoperative recovery, the patient was discharged without complications. CONCLUSION: It is essential for clinicians and pathologists to maintain a high degree of suspicion while evaluating such synchronous cancers.