Laparoscopic sleeve excision of lesser curvature gastrointestinal autonomic nerve tumour.

ABSTRACT

Gastrointestinal autonomic nerve tumors (GANT) are uncommon stromal tumors of the intestinal tract. Their histological appearance is similar to that of other gastrointestinal stromal tumors. We report probably the first laparoscopic excision of this rare tumor from our geographical region and compare our findings with the available case reports in the medical literature. A 38 year old male patient undergoing a routine health check was diagnosed with an exophytic growth on the lesser curvature of stomach on computerized tomography and underwent an initial endoscopic biopsy which was inconclusive. He underwent a laparoscopic sleeve excision of the GANT on the lesser curvature. Radical surgical resection of gastrointestinal autonomic nerve tumors seems to be the only available curative approach and survival seems possible even in large tumors.