• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.5
• /
• pp.2679-2681
• /
• 2016

Background: Gastro-entero-pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (GEP-NEN) are relatively rare tumors, not equally distributed in gastro-intestinal system. In 2010, a revised version of the WHO classification of GEP-NENs was published. This study reports for the first time the distribution and characteristics of GEP-NEN in a Lebanese population. Materials and Methods: This descriptive retrospective study concerns all the digestive neuroendocrine tumors with their characteristics diagnosed in $H\hat{o}tel$ Dieu de France in Beirut, Lebanon from 2001 to 2012, all the pathology reports being reanalyzed according to the latest WHO 2010 classification. The characteristics and features of GEP-NEN analyzed in this study were age, gender, grade and site. Results: A total of 89 GEP-NENs were diagnosed, representing 28.2% of all neuroendocrine tumors. The mean age of GEP-NEN patients was 58.7 years and the M/F sex ratio was 1.2. The primary localization was as follows: 21.3%(19) pancreatic, 18% (16) gastric, 15.7% (14) duodenal, 11.2% (10) appendix, 10.1% (9) intestinal, 10.1% (9) colorectal (7.9% colonic and 2.2% rectal), 5.6% (4) hepatic, 2.2% (2) ampulla, 1.1% (1) esophageal and 7.9%(5) NOS digestive (metastatic with unknown primary). Of the 89 patients with GEP-NEN, 56.2% (50) were diagnosed as grade I, 11.2% (10) as grade II, 20.2% (18) as grade III and 12.4% (11) were considered as mixed adeno-neuroendocrine carcinomas (MANEC). Conclusions: This study, one of the rare examples based on the 2010 WHO classification of neuroendocrine tumors in the literature, indicates that in the Lebanese population, all duodenal and appendicular tumors are G1 and the majority of MANEC tumors are gastric and pancreatic tumors. Moreover, more duodenal tumors and fewer rectal tumors were encountered in our study compared to European reports.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.10 no.1
• /
• pp.1-8
• /
• 2022

The incidence of gastric neuroendocrine tumors (NET) has been increased with the improvement of endoscopy accessibility. The World Health Organization classified NET of low (G1), intermediate (G2), high (G3) grade and neuroendocrine carcinoma with poor differentiation by mitotic count and Ki-67 labeling index. Gastric NET are divided into three subtypes based on the pathophysiology, and treatment is determined according to the subtype and prognostic factors of tumor. For diagnosis, endoscopy with biopsy, endoscopic ultrasonography, abdominal pelvis computed tomography, and serum gastrin level measure are required. In general, type 3, size > 2 cm, deep submucosal infiltration, high histological grade, lymphovascular invasion and metastasis are poor prognostic factors. Type 1 or 2 without these factors are treated by endoscopic resection, and other tumors needs surgery. Endoscopic resection of early type 3 or type 1 and 2 tumors with poor prognostic factors still remains a challenge.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.4 no.2
• /
• pp.51-57
• /
• 2016

The epidemiology of pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (PNENs) in Asia has been clarified through epidemiological studies, including one conducted in Japan, and subsequently another in South Korea. As endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) has become more widely accessible, endoscopic ultrasound-fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) has been performed in pancreatic tumors for which the clinical course was only monitored previously. This has enabled accurate diagnosis of pancreatic tumors based on the 2010 WHO classification; as a result, the number of patients with an accurate diagnosis has increased. Although surgery has been the standard therapy for PNENs, new treatment options have become available in Japan for the treatment of advanced or inoperable PNENs; of particular note is the recent introduction of molecular target drugs (such as everolimus and sunitinib) and streptozocin. Treatment for progressive PNENs needs to be selected for each patient with consideration of the performance status, degree of tumor differentiation, tumor mass, and proliferation rate. Somatostatin receptor (SSTR)-2 is expressed in many patients with neuroendocrine tumor. Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SRS), which can visualize SSTR-2 expression, has been approved in Japan. The SRS will be a useful diagnostic tool for locating neuroendocrine neoplasms, detecting distant metastasis, and evaluating therapy outcomes. In this manuscript, we review the latest diagnostic methods and treatments for PNENs.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.3 no.1
• /
• pp.21-25
• /
• 2015

Gastric neuroendocrine tumors (GNETs, also known as gastric carcinoids) are rare form of hormone-secreting neoplasms that present with varied clinical syndromes. There are four types of GNETs based on size, proliferation, localization, differentiation, and hormone production. Type I GNET is related to autoimmune atrophic gastritis and hypergastrinemia. Type II GNETs are related to multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN)-1, Zollinger-Ellison syndrome and hypergastrinemia. Type 3 GNETs are not associated with any background pathology, and type 4 GNETs are poorly differentiated tumors. The most useful diagnostic and prognostic marker for gastrointestinal NETs is plasma chromogranin A (CgA) levels. Endoscopic ultrasound is the method of choice to determine tumor size and depth of infiltration. For optimal management, the type, biology, and stage of the tumor must be considered. Here, we provide a comprehensive and up-to-date review of GNETs.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.12 no.1
• /
• pp.1-5
• /
• 2024

The incidence and prevalence of upper gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors (NETs), including gastric NETs (GNETs) and duodenal NETs (DNETs), have been gradually increasing. These trends may be associated with the increased use of health checkups, which includes upper endoscopy, in conjunction with better disease recognition. However, the clinical factors associated with GNETs and DNETs remain unknown; previous studies revealed discrepancies. Recently, metabolic disorders have been indicated as potential factors that are associated with GNETs and DNETs. This review summarizes the results of previous studies and briefly introduces the results of a recent Korean multicenter study on the factors associated with GNETs and DNETs.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.50-54
• /
• 2017

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors are rare pancreatic neoplasms comprising 1-2% of all pancreatic tumors and typically present high attenuating mass on arterial and venous phase images, due to their rich capillary network. A 70-year-old South Korean female visited our hospital presenting with jaundice and dark urine color. She had received an operation for treatment of small bowel perforation seven years ago. On physical examination, icteric sclera was observed but otherwise unremarkable. Laboratory tests were abnormal liver function test and suspected obstructive jaundice. Computed tomography revealed 4 cm sized cystic mass lesion with homogeneous low attenuation in the head of pancreas and distal common bile duct was compressed by the mass. During review of past medical records, we found that the mass was observed and measured about 1.7 cm seven years ago. To resolve obstructive jaundice, pylorus preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy was performed and diagnosed with well differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine carcinoma with intermediate grade.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.9 no.2
• /
• pp.57-59
• /
• 2021

Carcinoid tumor is called as neuroendocrine tumor and is classified into neuroendocrine tumor Grade 1, neuroendocrine tumor Grade 2, and neuroendocrine carcinoma based on the differentiation of tumors. Recently, the incidence of rectal carcinoid tumor has been increasing probably due to the increased interest on screening colonoscopy and the advancement of endoscopic imaging technology. As the rectal carcinoid shows a wide range of clinical characteristics such as metastasis and long-term prognosis depending on the size and histologic features, it is a challenge to give a consistent diagnostic code in patients with the rectal carcinoid. If the rectal carcinoid tumor is less than 1 cm in size, it can be given as the code of definite malignancy or the code of uncertain malignant potential according to International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (ICD-O) by World Health Organization (WHO). Because patients get different amount of benefit from the insurance company based on different diagnostic codes, this inconsistent coding system has caused a significant confusion in the clinical practice. In 2019, WHO updated ICD-O and Statistics Korea subsequently changed Korean Standard Classification of Diseases (KCD) including the code of rectal carcinoid tumors. This review will summarize what has been changed in recent ICD-O and KCD system regarding the rectal carcinoid tumor and surmise its clinical implication.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
• /
• v.5 no.2
• /
• pp.86-90
• /
• 2017

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate clinicopathologic features of type 3 gastric neuroendocrine neoplasm (NEN) by treatment modality. Methods: The Korean Society of Gastrointestinal Cancer conducted the Korean Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumor Registry, a retrospective registry database of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors from 16 hospitals in Korea. The normal serum gastrin level range was defined as <100 pg/mL, and gastric NEN patients with normal gastrin level were selected for analysis. Results: Among 358 patients with gastric NEN, 21 (5.9%) patients were classified with type 3 gastric NEN. The median age was 53 years (range 30-74). According to the WHO 2010 classification, 13 (61.9%) patients had grade 1, and 8 (38.1%) patients had grade 2 or 3. Endoscopic treatment was performed in 14 (66.7%) patients, and surgery was performed in 7 (33.3%) patients. The tumor size was smaller in the endoscopic treatment group than in the surgery group (0.6 cm vs 1.3 cm, p=0.006). After treatment, there was one recurrence in the surgery group. Conclusion: In small size Type 3 gastric NEN, endoscopic treatment was associated with a good prognosis, compared to surgery. Thus, endoscopic treatment can be used an alternative modality in selected cases of type 3 gastric NEN.