Use of adjuvant systemic therapy increasing for gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST)

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

Localized gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are rarely seen, but are the most common sarcomas in the gastrointestinal tract.

The approval of the drug imatinib and its use in adjuvant systemic treatment post-surgery for adult patients has changed GIST treatment in the last decade. 

Researchers from the American Cancer Society wished to evaluate the evolving use of adjuvant therapy in GIST cases. They examined data from the National Cancer Data Base, reviewing the records of 4,694 patients diagnosed with GIST cases after 2004 to establish patterns of adjuvant therapy use.

The investigators discovered that between 2006 and 2007, the use of adjuvant systemic therapy in GIST cases more than doubled, only to drop in 2011. The peak point was in 2009, with nearly 38% of patients reviewed using adjuvant therapy.

Larger tumor size, an older patient age, or a non-minority white patient were all indicators of greater adjuvant systemic therapy use. The authors concluded that adjuvant systemic therapy use has increased by a significant margin in the last decade, acknowledging the modifying factors mentioned.

Results of this study were published online in the American Journal of Clinical Oncology.