PURPOSE: To determine the prognosis significance of the TNM clinic stage and the five-year survival rate of patients with primary carcinoma of the gallbladder. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A descriptive, longitudinal, observational study with a single-box empirical design that evaluated 71 patients with gallbladder cancer who had surgical resection of the neoplasia in the Belén Hospital in Trujillo, Peru between 1966 and 2000. RESULTS: The mean age of the total series was 61.6+/-12.04 years (ranging from 33 to 88 years). Most of the patients belonged to the age group of 60 years or older (56.3%). Ten patients were males (14.1%) and 61 were females (85.9%), with a M:F ratio of 1:6.1. In the univariate analysis using the log-rank test, the following variables were significantly related to a five-year survival time: primary tumor (p=0.0001), regional ganglionic condition (p=0.0038), clinic stage (p=0.00001). The actuarial survival rate of all the series at 12, 36, and 60 months was 30%, 14.1%, and 11.3%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prognosis factors significantly related to five-year survival were: primary tumor (p=0.0001), regional ganglionic condition (p=0.0038) and clinic stage (p=0.00001). The actuarial survival rate of all the series at 12, 36, and 60 months was 30%, 14.1%, and 11.3%, respectively.