Utility of Video PTCS for Mucin- Producing Bile Duct Tumors

Abstract

Mucin-producing bile duct cancer is defined as a papillary tumor which develops in the biliary mucosa and produces mucin. We performed endoscopic observations of mucin-producing bile duct cancer by video percutaneous transhepatic cholangioscopy (PTCS). The lesion foci in the 6 cases studied were in the extrahepatic bile duct in 1 case, and in the intrahepatic bile duct in 5 cases. In all cases, the lesions were recognizable as papillary tumors in the bile duct. A diagnosis of a superficial tumor extension within the biliary mucosa was also possible, which was useful for deciding on the position of resection lines for a surgical operation. In addition, by narrow-band imaging (NBI) observations, the papillary tumors were more clearly recognized, and a determination of the border between the tumor and the normal mucosa was made even clearer than by regular optical cholangioscopy.