BACKGROUND: Obstructive jaundice is a common condition in advanced digestive cancer. Palliative procedures can improve quality of life and allow patients to attempt a systemic treatment. Bilioenteric anastomosis is still the procedure of choice for patients in many centers. When a surgical bypass is not possible, biliary drainage can be done by placing endoscopic or transparietal stents, which are less durable methods even when an expandable stent is employed.
METHODS: A 47-year-old male with an excellent clinical status and a previous cholecystectomy and an exploratory laparotomy for advanced gastric cancer was referred with obstructive jaundice. A preoperative CT scan showed a dilated bile duct and a small mass at the distal hepatic hilum. No other signs of metastasis were found. A surgical bilioenteric anastomosis was indicated. At surgery, a distal choledochal obstruction and a mesenteric retraction by a lymph node mass prevented the jejunum to ascend for a bilioenteric anastomosis. Surgically, an alternative bilioenteric bypass was performed by means of an ileal loop interposition between the bile duct and the jejunum.
RESULT: The recovery of the patient was uneventful and his bilirubin levels normalized after one week. The patient was then referred for systemic chemotherapy.
CONCLUSIONS: This alternative biliary bypass can be safely and easily performed, and may be a good alternative for patients already referred for surgery because of a better life expectancy and when the jejunum is not an alternative.