Carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater associated with other organ malignancies

Because of its location with respect to the biliary system, carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater is considered to manifest earlier in its course of development than carcinoma of the pancreas. The most common physical finding is jaundice, which occurs in 93-100% of cases 1,2]. This retrospective study describes the results of the treatment and prognosis for double primary cancers in which cancer of the ampulla of Vater was associated with malignancies in other organs in 5 patients who were diagnosed and treated at Kurume University Hospital. The patients included 5 men with an average age of 72.8 years. There were 3 synchronous double and 2 metachronous double cancer patients. Regarding prognoses of these patients, 1 patient with associated lung cancer died because of postoperative complications after pneumonectomy, 1 patient died due to carcinomatosa peritonei developing from the ampulla Vater carcinoma, and 1 patient died because of metastatic liver tumors from the ampullary carcinoma. In multiple cancers including ampulla Vater carcinoma, gastrointestinal cancers such as gastric or colon cancer occur frequently. Therefore, a careful gastrointestinal examination should be done preoperatively. We report our experience with 5 cases of ampullary carcinoma associated with malignancies in other organs and review the literature.