Extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumor of the omentum: a rare case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are uncommon mesenchymal spindle-cell or epithelioid neoplasms, located mainly with higher frequency in the stomach and small bowel. GISTs represent the majority of primary non-epithelial neoplasms of the digestive tract, most frequently expressing the KIT protein a transmembrane tyrosine kinase receptor for stem cell factor. Extra-gastrointestinal stromal tumors tend to present In fewer than 5% of cases; they originate primarily from the mesentery, omentum or peritoneum. Furthermore, these extra-gastrointestinal tumors (EGIST) tend to be more common in patients over the age of 50 years. EGISTs are neoplasms with overlapping immunohistological features, occurring in the abdomen outside the gastrointestinal tract with no connection to the gastric or intestinal wall. We describe here a rare case of EGIST of the lesser omentum and report the clinical, macroscopic, immunohistological and radiological features of an EGIST arising in the lesser omentum of a 63-year old man. Clinical course and the prognostic factors of such lesions will also be discussed. EGISTs in the lesser omentum can grow slowly and remain silent despite a large tumor size. In most cases, a pre-operative diagnosis is not possible, and the patient undergoes a surgical operation for the generic diagnosis of abdominal mass. During the intervention it is important to achieve a complete removal of the mass and to examine every possible adhesion to the gastrointestinal wall.