title: Unusual endoscopic findings of gastric neuroendocrine tumor.
abstract: Gastric neuroendocrine tumor (NET) is sometimes found as a submucosal tumor on upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Gastric NET with malignant profile and neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) show various forms which are difficult to distinguish from gastric cancer and other disease. We report a case of a cauliflower-shaped NET of the stomach. A 61-year-old man was referred to our hospital with a complaint of abdominal fullness. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopic examination revealed an unusual, whitish cauliflower-shaped tumor that belongs to Borrmann type I on the lesser curvature of the gastric antrum. Histological examination of the biopsy specimen revealed NET G2, because the tumor cells were CD56- and synaptophysin-positive by immunohistochemical analysis. A distal gastrectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy was performed. A recurrence in the liver was revealed by follow up computed tomography after 11 months from operation. Combined chemotherapy with irinotecan (CPT-11) plus cisplatin (CDDP) was treated. The patient achieved a partial response, but he died after 31 months from gastrectomy. There is no independent, large-scaled prospective study and no standard treatment for gastric NETs with distant metastases. Our case is reported with a literature review of the treatment of metastatic gastric NET G2.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Kagawa Prefectural Shirotori Hospital.
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kishi
authors.forename: Akihiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fujisawa
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Horikita
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.forename: Kazushi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ooshimo
authors.forename: Fumiko
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kishi
authors.forename: Masako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Chun-Che
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Tetsuji
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takayama
mesh_terms: D016099:Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018358:Neuroendocrine Tumors / Q000473:pathology*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*