Sun YF, Cao XK, Wei Q, Gao YH. Potential biomarkers for the prognosis of gastrointestinal stromal tumors. World J Gastrointest Oncol 2025; 17(4): 102831 [DOI: 10.4251/wjgo.v17.i4.102831]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Yao-Hui Gao, PhD, Professor, Department of Pathology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, No. 301 Yanchang Middle Road, Shanghai 200000, China. gaoyaohui187@tongji.edu.cn
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Editorial
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Apr 15, 2025; 17(4): 102831 Published online Apr 15, 2025. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v17.i4.102831
Potential biomarkers for the prognosis of gastrointestinal stromal tumors
Yue-Fang Sun, Xuan-Ke Cao, Qing Wei, Yao-Hui Gao
Yue-Fang Sun, Xuan-Ke Cao, Qing Wei, Yao-Hui Gao, Department of Pathology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200000, China
Co-first authors: Yue-Fang Sun and Xuan-Ke Cao.
Co-corresponding authors: Qing Wei and Yao-Hui Gao.
Author contributions: Sun YF, Cao XK, Wei Q and Gao YH designed and performed the research study; all of the authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript to be published.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare no conflict of interest in publishing the manuscript.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yao-Hui Gao, PhD, Professor, Department of Pathology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, No. 301 Yanchang Middle Road, Shanghai 200000, China. gaoyaohui187@tongji.edu.cn
Received: November 6, 2024 Revised: January 17, 2025 Accepted: February 5, 2025 Published online: April 15, 2025 Processing time: 140 Days and 13.9 Hours
Abstract
In this editorial we comment on the article published in the recent issue of World Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology. This study aims to explore the relationship between preoperative inflammation markers and the recurrence of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) after surgery. It is well known that the best-documented prognostic parameters for GIST are mitotic activity, tumor size and anatomical site. Besides, mutation status represents a prognostic as well as predictive factor. This study provides a new tool for postoperative recurrence risk assessment of GIST patients by establishing a line chart prediction model, which is certificated by previous research that high platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio correlated with increased tumour sizes, more advanced tumour stages and mitotic index. However, as a retrospective study, inevitable bias exists in the results; furthermore, the sample size of this study is relatively small, influencing the universality of the results. Moreover, when assessing risk rating and prognosis of GIST, some novel inflammatory makers could be taken into consideration, such as proenkephalin and SLITRK3. Overall, this study can offer an additional model for GIST prognosis and recurrence risk assessment, independent of the traditional prognostic factors of GIST.
Core Tip: The importance of predicting prognosis in the management of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) is well known, with a particular focus on mitotic activity, tumor size, anatomical location, and KIT and platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha mutation status. It underscores the emerging significance of inflammatory markers such as the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, systemic immune-to-inflammation index, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) in predicting GIST prognosis and recurrence risk. This study identified the MLR and PLR as independent risk factors, thereby providing a predictive model for recurrence-free survival. However, it is important to note that the study has limitations, including its retrospective design, small sample size, and lack of external validation.
