Abstract
Gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors grow slowly. However, gastrinoma is potentially malignant and is often metastasized to the liver and/or lymph nodes when first diagnosed. Liver metastasis is the major prognostic factor in patients with gastrinoma and control of liver lesions significantly improves the survival rate. Surgery is the gold standard and best radically curative treatment for patients with gastrinoma. Patients with gastrinoma are assessed for suitability to undergo surgery or other treatments by using a combination of several diagnostic modalities such as selective arterial secretagogue injection test (SASI test), CT scan, ultrasonography and endoscopy. When surgery is considered to be unsuitable, treatment with a combination of other procedures, such as chemotherapy, somatostatin analogues, arterial embolization, chemoembolization and radiofrequency ablation, are performed. The combination of aggressive treatments for gastrinoma can improve both the symptoms and the prognosis of patients with gastrinoma.
