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We present an interesting case of acute acalculous cholecystitis which was diagnosed as cystic duct cancer after endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS). A 63-year-old man visited to an emergency room (ER) because of right upper quadrant (RUQ) abdominal pain. The patient had fever up to 38.2°C and tenderness at RUQ abdomen. The Murphy’s sign was positive. Laboratory tests showed elevated white blood cell count and abnormal liver function test. The computed tomography scan revealed a distended gallbladder with inflammation without gallstone. Emergent gallbladder drainage was performed at ER. The cholecystogram via percutaneous tube and EUS revealed hypoechoic intraluminal mass at cystic duct. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed at first, and the frozen pathologic examination revealed adenocarcinoma in the cystic duct. The extended cholecystectomy was performed after a month and there was no residual tumor in the liver bed and lymph nodes. The final staging of GBC was revealed as pT2N0M0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 64-year-old man was treated with sunitinib as a first-line therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma. He was given oral sunitinib in cycles of 50 mg once daily for 2 weeks followed by a week off. During the 5th week of treatment right upper quadrant pain developed, but this resolved spontaneously during the 6th week (off treatment). However, on the 8th week of treatment, he was admitted to hospital because the acute right upper quadrant pain recurred with nausea, vomiting, and fever. Acute acalculous cholecystitis was then diagnosed by ultrasonography and CT. In addition, his laboratory findings indicated disseminated intravascular coagulation. Accordingly, sunitinib therapy was discontinued and broad-spectrum antibiotics initiated. He subsequently recovered after emergent percutaneous cholecystostomy. His Naranjo Adverse Drug Reaction Probability Scale score was 7, indicaing a probable association of the event with sunitinib. Suspicion of sunitinib-related acute cholecystitis is required, because, although uncommon, it can be life-threatening.

Acute cholecystitis (AC), defined as inflammation of the gallbladder, is mainly caused by gallstones. Over 90% of AC results from obstruction of the cystic duct by stones or sludge, which subsequently increases the intraluminal pressure within the gallbladder and, in conjunction with the presence of bile supersaturated with cholesterol, activates an acute inflammatory cascade. Clinical features play an important role in the diagnosis of AC. The Tokyo Guidelines 2018 for acute cholecystitis designates the presence of local inflammatory signs and systemic inflammatory signs for a suspected diagnosis. It requires confirmation by radiological imaging along with these two factors for a definitive diagnosis. Thanks to less invasiveness, easy availability, ease of use, and cost-effectiveness, ultrasound (US) is usually accepted as the first choice in suspicious AC patients. A meta-analysis comparing methods of diagnosis for AC reported that the US has 81% of sensitivity and 83% of specificity. Abdominal computed tomography is recommended for diagnosing emphysematous or gangrenous cholecystitis. Meanwhile, acute acalculous cholecystitis (AAC) is a life-threatening disease mainly in severely ill patients. It usually affects the patients hospitalized for multiple trauma, burns, cardiopulmonary bypass surgery, long-term total parenteral nutrition or sepsis. The diagnosis of AAC is quite challenging and requires a high index of suspicion. Currently, cholecystectomy is the treatment of choice for AC, although the optimal time for surgery is still controversial. Due to high morbidity and mortality in high surgical risk groups, percutaneous gallbladder drainage can be a safe and feasible alternative to cholecystectomy, particularly for patients unfit for the surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]