[A case of gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumor resected after chemotherapy with imatinib].

We report a case of a residual stomach gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) successfully treated with resection. We were able to curatively resect after treatment with imatinib. A 33-year-old man underwent distal gastrectomy for duodenal ulcer perforation at the age of 18. He began to experience back pain, and the diagnosis of mild gastritis was made over observation in near medicine, but he was admitted to our hospital because his symptoms continued for 5 months. Abdominal CT and MRI showed a protruding lesion of approximately 17 cm in the left upper-abdomen. Surgery was performed, but the tumor had directly invaded the surrounding organs. To find the definite diagnosis, a biopsy was performed. The histopathological diagnosis was c-kit-positive GIST. Administration of imatinib 400 mg/day was commenced. After 6 months of treatment, CT revealed a roughly 68% reduction in the tumor's diameter. The radical operation was considered feasible and total gastrectomy was performed. The postoperative course was uneventful. Neoadjuvant therapy with imatinib may become a useful means of conserving improve organ and complete resection rate increase with tumor reduction.