Gastrointestinal stromal tumors of the stomach. A ten-year surgical experience.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors show an increasing incidence. Immunohistochemistry is mandatory to make differential diagnosis with other mesenchimal tumors. We retrospectively reviewed 15 primary stomach GISTs operated during the last decade. Gastroscopy, Ultrasonography and CT scan were employed to obtain the diagnosis. Tumor size ranged from 1.5 to 30 cm in diameter. Treatment consisted of curative surgical resection without sistematic lymph node dissection. A wedge resection was sufficient in 8 cases. In 2 patients a distal subtotal gastrectomy was required and in 1 a total enlarged gastrectomy with pancreaticosplenectomy was performed. 4 GISTs were incidentally discovered and removed during surgical procedures for other gastrointestinal malignancies. In 4 cases a laparoscopic wedge resection was possible. In all cases postoperative course was uneventful. No adjuvant treatment was administered. Concerning the follow-up, two patients died for local and distant relapse while 13 are still alive (most of them operated during the last three years). GISTs show a very unpredictable clinical course and curative surgery is the only potential effective curative treatment.