Clinical features and surgical treatments of rare gastrointestinal stromal tumor spinal metastases

Abstract

Objective

To increase our knowledge of the characteristics of rare gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) spinal metastatic diseases and share our experience of dealing with these diseases.

Methods

A total of 6 patients with spinal cord compression caused by GISTs spinal metastases operated in our department were identified from Oct, 2010 to Oct, 2018. The clinical and operative notes, radiographic images, and pathological reports with histochemistry of all these patients were reviewed.

Results

Among these six, four were male. The average age was 57.2 ± 9.0 years-old. The average duration between GISTs resections and diagnosis of spinal metastases was 80.8 ± 91.9 months. Four patients died from their disease during follow-up. The average duration between operation and death was 8.5 ± 4.4 months.

Conclusions

Generally, patients with GISTs spinal metastatic diseases had a poor prognosis. The average survival of these patients did not exceed 12 months. Palliative treatments are recommended mainly to control symptoms.

Keywords:

• Surgical resection
• spinal cord compression
• spinal tumor
• prognosis
• metastasis

Acknowledgments

The authors thank all the colleagues for their kind help and all patients’ cooperation to our work.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflict of interest concerning the materials or methods used in this study or the findings specified in this article.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant (Grant No. 81702658).