RADIOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF GASTROINTESTINAL STROMAL TUMOR (GIST)

Abstract

Background: Recent advances in immunohistochemistry have revealed that the majority of the tumors originating from mesenchymal tissues of gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) are gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). The purpose of this study is to reevaluate the imaging findings of mesenchymal tumors of gastrointestinal tract pathologically proven as gastrointestinal stromal tumors.
Materials and Methods: Ten mesenchymal tumors of gastrointestinal tract were resected at our hospital from May 1993 till March 2001. These were examined immunohistochemically using antibodies against c-kit, CD34, alpha-smooth muscle actin, and S-100 protein. Their imaging findings in CT, MRI, and endoscopy and their clinical features were reviewed.
Results: A diagnosis of gastrointestinal stromal tumor was confirmed in all 10 cases by immunohistochemical studies. The imaging findings were similar in some respects to those of tumors that were conventionally diagnosed as leiomyosarcoma. However, gastrointestinal stromal tumors were less in vascularity than conventionally reported leiomyosarcomas. Moreover, the findings of necrosis or myxoid change in each small nodule of large multinodular tumor were characteristic of gastrointestinal stromal tumors.
Conclusions: The characteristic imaging findings of gastrointestinal stromal tumors in this study might be useful for their preoperative precise diagnosis.