title: Plexiform angiomyxoid myofibroblastic tumor of the stomach.
abstract: Plexiform angiomyxoid myofibroblastic tumor of the stomach is a unique mesenchymal tumor that we first described in 2007. The tumor is very rare, and to date, only 18 cases confirmed by immunohistochemistry have been reported in the literature. The patients' ages ranged from 7 to 75 years (mean, 43 years), and the male-to-female ratio was approximately 1:1. Representative clinical symptoms are ulceration, associated upper gastrointestinal bleeding (hematemesis), and anemia. The tumors are located at the antrum in all cases, and grossly, the tumor is whitish to brownish or reddish, and forms a lobulated submucosal or transmural mass. Microscopically, the tumor is characterized by a plexiform growth pattern, the proliferation of cytologically bland spindle cells, and a myxoid stroma that is rich in small vessels and positive for Alcian blue stain. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells are positive for alpha-smooth muscle actin and negative for KIT and CD34. Differential diagnoses include gastrointestinal stromal tumor and other mesenchymal tumors of the gastrointestinal tract. Some authors proposed that this tumor should be designated as "plexiform fibromyxoma", but this designation might cause confusion. The tumor is probably benign and thus far, neither recurrence nor metastasis has been reported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan. ytakaha-tky@umin.ac.jp
authors.forename: Yoshihisa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Masako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Toshio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fukusato
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005350:Fibroma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D046152:Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008637:Mesenchymoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D008875:Middle Aged; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D055815:Young Adult