Are Gallstones and Gallbladder Carcinoma Related?

THE LITERATURE contains many reports stating that gallstones are related to gallbladder carcinoma.1-3To test this concept we reviewed 1,396 consecutive cholecystectomies between January, 1948, and June 30, 1960. Method The pathological index in the City of Kingston Laboratory which maintains a master file for theKingston Hospital, Benedictine Hospital, Veterans Memorial Hospital, and the Margaretville Hospital was reviewed. No index was available for the year 1950; therefore this entire year was excluded from the series. Cholelithiasis was diagnosed from thecholecystectomy specimens. If the gallbladder had been opened in the operating room, the operative record and the x-ray reports were reviewed for evidence of gallstones. All diagnoses of carcinoma of the gallbladder were reviewed and confirmed by 2 pathologists. Result The sex incidence of cholecystectomies was 3 females to 1 male (Table 1). Nineteen primary carcinomas of the gallbladder were found in 1,396 cholecystectomy specimens, an incidence