Gastrointestinal stromal tumor

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor
Histopathologic image of gastrointestinal stromal tumor of the stomach. Hematoxylin-eosin stain.
SpecialtyOncology
Differential diagnosisEctopic pancreas[1]

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal neoplasms of the gastrointestinal tract. GISTs arise in the smooth muscle pacemaker interstitial cell of Cajal, or similar cells.[2] They are defined as tumors whose behavior is driven by mutations in the KIT gene (85%),[2] PDGFRA gene (10%),[2] or BRAF kinase (rare).[2] 95% of GISTs stain positively for KIT (CD117).[2][3] Most (66%) occur in the stomach and gastric GISTs have a lower malignant potential than tumors found elsewhere in the GI tract.[3]

  1. ^ Yuan, Z; Chen, J; Zheng, Q; Huang, XY; Yang, Z; Tang, J (7 August 2009). "Heterotopic pancreas in the gastrointestinal tract". World Journal of Gastroenterology. 15 (29): 3701–3. doi:10.3748/wjg.15.3701. PMC 2721251. PMID 19653355.
  2. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference DeVita_2011_9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Miettinen2006 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).