0000000000222030
AUTHOR
Joanna Przybyl
Targeted Therapy in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors
Advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) pathogenesis have resulted in the development of a treatment approach which has become a model of targeted therapy in oncology. The introduction of imatinib mesylate [inhibiting KIT/PDGFRA (platelet-derived growth factor receptor-α) and their downstream signaling cascade] has dramatically improved the therapy of advanced (inoperable and/or metastatic) GIST. Imatinib has now become the standard of care in the treatment of patients with advanced GIST and its efficacy has been proven also in adjuvant setting after resection of primary high-risk tumors. However, a majority of patients eventually…
Gene Signatures in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) constitute a rare heterogeneous group of the most common mesenchymal neoplasm of gastrointestinal tract (GI). GISTs have emerged during the recent years as a distinct sarcoma entity due to advances in the understanding of molecular mechanism of their pathogenesis. They are believed to originate from precursors shared with interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) – the pacemaker cells of the gut (for which CD117 antigen is the immunohistochemical marker), and they may arise along all GI (most commonly in the stomach or the small bowel) or rarely elsewhere. Their biological behavior is difficult to predict, ranging from clinically benign to malignant. The trea…