Abstract

Background: Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) are unique neoplasms of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The development of targeted therapeutic agents such as imatinib mesylate (Glivec) has altered the way on how we now manage these rare malignancies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the management of GISTs in three Irish tertiary hospitals. Methods: We performed a retrospective, multicenter audit of patients diagnosed with gastrointestinal stromal tumours over a ten year period (2005-2015). Results: 110 patients were included in the study. Abdominal pain was the most common presenting symptom, reported in 30% of patients, while 31% were incidental findings. The stomach was the most common primary site of disease, observed in 77% of cases. 15 patients had metastatic disease at the time of diagnosis (14%), and 10 of these patients had liver involvement. More than half of patients (61%) were managed with surgical excision alone (61%), while 24 were managed with surveillance and 28 patients treated with adjuvant Glivec, which was generally well tolerated. 18 patients (20%) demonstrated recurrent or progressive disease after first line treatment. 102 patients (93%) are alive today. Conclusion: While surgery is widely regarded as the primary treatment modality for GISTs the addition of imatinib mesylate has enabled physicians to deliver more personalised treatment while optimising patient outcomes.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.