Surgery and Molecular Therapy for GIST

Presenter: Dr. Ronald P. DeMatteo
Surgeon from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Duration: 65 minutes

Multi-modality therapy is generally the most effective therapeutic approach in cancer. While tyrosine kinase inhibitors have dramatically changed the outcome for patients with GIST, the optimal combination of surgery and molecular therapy for both primary and metastatic GIST has not been determined. In terms of primary GIST, we have performed 2 national intergroup studies to examine the benefit of taking imatinib mesylate after surgery. With regard to metastatic GIST, we are studying the benefit of surgery in patients who have responsive or stable disease while on a tyrosine kinase inhibitor. In this presentation, I will discuss the use of surgery and tyrosine kinase inhibition in primary and metastatic GIST.