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. 1998 Aug;43(2):223–228. doi: 10.1136/gut.43.2.223

Clinical symptoms, hormone profiles, treatment, and prognosis in patients with gastric carcinoids

D Granberg 1, E Wilander 1, M Stridsberg 1, G Granerus 1, B Skogseid 1, K Oberg 1
PMCID: PMC1727202  PMID: 10189848

Abstract

Background—Type 1 gastric carcinoids are associated with hypergastrinaemia and chronic atrophic gastritis, type 2 occur in patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 combined with Zollinger-Ellison syndrome, and type 3 lack any relation to hypergastrinaemia. Type 1 tumours are usually benign whereas type 3 are highly malignant. 
Aims—To identify possible tumour markers in patients with gastric carcinoids. 
Patients/method—Nine patients with type 1, one with type 2, and five with type 3 were evaluated with regard to symptoms, hormone profile, and prognosis. 
Results—Plasma chromogranin A was increased in all patients but was higher (p<0.01) in those with type 3 than those with type 1 carcinoids. All patients with type 3 carcinoids died from metastatic disease, but none of the type 1 patients died as a result of their tumours. One type 1 patient with a solitary liver metastasis received interferon α and octreotide treatment. Nine months later, the metastasis was no longer detectable. She is still alive eight years after diagnosis, without recurrent disease. This represents the only reported case of foregut carcinoid with an unresectable liver metastasis that seems to be have been cured by biotherapy. 
Conclusions—Plasma chromogranin A appears to be a valuable tumour marker for all types of gastric carcinoid. Combination therapy with interferon α and octreotide may be beneficial in patients with metastasising type 1 gastric carcinoids. 



Keywords: gastric carcinoids; chromogranin; histamine; interferon; octreotide

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Figure 1 .

Figure 1

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Ultrasonograph of the liver of a patient with type 1 carcinoids (A) before treatment started showing a metastasis of about 1 cm (between the crosses) and (B) after nine months of interferon α therapy, when the metastasis is no longer visible. 


Figure 2 .

Figure 2

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Chromogranin A (CgA) and MeImAA in the patient with type 1 tumour with a liver metastasis that disappeared during medical treatment. The solid line shows the upper normal range for chromogranin A and the dotted line the upper normal range for MeImAA. The arrow indicates the time at which the liver metastasis was no longer visible on ultrasound examination of the liver. 


Figure 3 .

Figure 3

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Cumulative survival (Kaplan-Meier plot) in patients with type 1 and type 3 gastric carcinoids. 


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