GIST Cancer, Cancer Screening
GIST Cancer Screening
Screening is testing for diseases like cancer in people who do not have any symptoms. Can GISTs be diagnosed early?
Screening is testing for diseases like cancer in people who do not have any symptoms. Screening tests can find some types of cancer early, when treatment is most likely to be effective. But at this time, there are no effective screening tests for Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GISTs), so routine testing of people without any symptoms is not recommended.
Many GISTs are found because of symptoms a person is having, but some GISTs may be found early by chance. Sometimes they are seen on an exam for another problem, like during a colonoscopy to look for colorectal cancer. Rarely, a GIST may be seen on an imaging test, like a computed tomography (CT) scan, that is done for another reason. Some GISTs may also be found incidentally (unexpectedly) during abdominal surgery for another problem.
Reference
- https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/familial-gist
- https://www.cancer.org/cancer/gastrointestinal-stromal-tumor/detection-diagnosis-staging/detection.html
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/gastrointestinal-stromal-tumors/cdc-20387715
- https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/condition/gastrointestinal-stromal-tumor/
- https://www.pennmedicine.org/cancer/types-of-cancer/gastrointestinal-stromal-tumor/gastrointestinal-stromal-tumors-diagnosis