Title: ECTOPIC LIVER ON THE GALLBLADDER-REPORT OF A CASE-
Abstract: Ectopic liver is a rare congenital abnormality, with only 50 cases reported in Japan prior to 1991. A case of ectopic liver originating from the gallbladder was incidentally discovered in a 64-year-old woman during a laparoscopic cholecystectomy for a polyp of the gallbladder. The ectopic liver appeared to be a 5mm extramural gallbladder polyp. Macroscopically, the ectopic liver was attached to the gallbladder by avascular connective tissue without any direct connection to the liver itself. No morphological abnormality was observed in the abdominal cavity including the liver. Histologically the ectopic liver bore a strong likeness to the liver, namely, it had the Glisson's capsule, bile ducts, arteries and veins originating from the cystic artery and vein, and hepatocytes which produced bile. Extopic livers usually have no clinical significance and are discovered incidentally during autopsy, laparotomy or laparoscopy. However, some cases of ectopic liver cirrhosis and matastatic carcinoma to the ectopic liver have been reported.