GUT MESENCHYMAL TUMORS: AN INSTITUTIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

IntroductionTumors arising from the mesenchymal layer of the gastrointestinal tract are classied as gastrointestinal stromal tumors or neuroendocrine tumors based on the immunohistochemical markers they express and the hormones they produce. They are often diagnosed postoperatively on histopathology. This study aimed to examine the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of mesenchymal gut tumors in a tertiary care center in a low-income country. We conducted a retrospective study of histopathol Patients and methods ogical reports of gut resection specimens (excluding nonspecic appendicitis) collected from patients diagnosed with gastrointestinal stromal tumors and neuroendocrine tumors treated at our facility from 2017 to 2021. We evaluated clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management. Of 38 Results gastrointestinal resection specimens, we found seven patients with gut mesenchymal tumors (two in the foregut, ve in the midgut). There were no hindgut mesenchymal tumors. Five were gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and two were neuroendocrine tumors (one in the foregut and one in the midgut). All tumors were resected entirely. Two patients underwent postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy. All patients were disease-free at follow-up (range, eight months to four years). Gut mesenchymal tumors clinically prese Conclusion nted with nearly the same features as those of more common pathologies like intestinal tuberculosis. The gut mesenchymal tumors had good prognosis after adequate surgical resection irrespective of histological type and grade of the tumor. Adjuvant chemotherapy seemed to provide no additional benet, and in primary completely resectable tumors, it is probably redundant and not economically viable.