Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumours

Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) are rare mesenchymal tumours of the gastrointestinal tract, though rarely arising from intra-abdominal soft tissues. They are most commonly found in the stomach and small intestine. GISTs are either derived from or differentiated towards interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) or their stem cell precursors. They are diagnosed usually by a combination of computerized tomography (CT) and pathology. The treatment of localized GIST usually entails resection with or without adjuvant imatinib mesylate (IM). Advanced unresectable GISTs are treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), with imatinib mesylate (IM) being the initial modality of therapy. There is an increasing emphasis on identifying driver mutations in GIST as these have therapeutic implications.