title: Staging intra-abdominal desmoid tumors in familial adenomatous polyposis: a search for a uniform approach to a troubling disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Desmoid tumors are a clinical problem in 12 to 15 percent of patients with familial adenomatous polyposis. There is no predictably effective treatment for intra-abdominal desmoid tumors, which sometimes cause significant complications by their effects on the ureters or bowel. The relative rarity and the clinical heterogeneity of intra-abdominal desmoid tumors make randomized studies difficult to do. In this article a staging system is proposed to make multi-institutional studies easier.
  
  
  METHODS
  Intra-abdominal desmoid tumors can be staged according to their size, clinical presentation and growth pattern.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A way of staging intra-abdominal desmoid tumors is proposed to facilitate stratification by disease severity during collaborative studies of various treatments.
authors.affiliation: Department of Colorectal Surgery, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio 44195, USA.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Church
authors.forename: Terri
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Berk
authors.forename: Bruce M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Boman
authors.forename: Jose
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guillem
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodriguez-Bigas
authors.forename: Larry
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rusin
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Weber
mesh_terms: D000008:Abdominal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D034861:Abdominal Wall / Q000473:pathology; D011125:Adenomatous Polyposis Coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D018222:Desmoid Tumors / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D017491:Genes, APC; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008643:Mesentery / Q000473:pathology; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009378:Neoplasms, Multiple Primary / Q000473:pathology*; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D010534:Peritoneal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000032:analysis; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone