Characteristics and outcomes of gallbladder cancer patients at the Tata Medical Center, Kolkata 2017-2019.

Abstract

The north and north-eastern regions of India have among the highest incidence of gallbladder cancer (GBC) in the world. WereporttheclinicopathologicalcharateristicsandoutcomeofGBCpatientsinIndia. Electronic medical records of patients diagnosed with GBC atTataMedicalCenter,Kolkatabetween 2017 and 2019 were analyzed. There were 698 cases of confirmed GBC with a median age of 58 (IQR: 50-65) years and female:male ratio of 1.96. At presentation, 91% (496/544) had stage III/IV disease and 30% (189/640) had incidental GBC. The 2-year overall survival (OS) was 100% (95% CI: 100-100); 61% (95% CI: 45-83); 30% (95% CI: 21-43); and 9% (95% CI: 6-13) for stages I-IV, respectively (p= <0.0001). For all patients, the 2-year OS in patients who had a radical cholecystectomy followed by adjuvant therapy (N= 36) was 50% (95% CI: 39-64), compared to 29% (95% CI: 22-38) for those who had a simple cholecystectomy and/or chemotherapy (N= 265) and 9% (95% CI: 6-14) in patients who were palliated (N= 107) (p= <0.0001). The combined surgical/chemotherapy approach for patients with stage II GBC showed the best outcomes. Early detection of GBC remains problematic with the majority of patients presenting with stage III-IV and who have a median survival of 9.1months. Our data suggests that the tumor is chemoresponsive and multi-center collaborative clinical trials to identify alternative therapies are urgently required.