OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects and prognosis of surgical treatment in primary gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST).

METHODSThe clinicopathological data of 73 patients with primary GIST underwent operation from April 1997 to December 2007 was retrospectively analyzed, and the prognosis was evaluated too.

RESULTSAmong the 73 cases, 68 cases received complete tumor resection, among which 12 cases underwent laparoscopic operation; while palliative resection and biopsy only were carried out in the other 5 cases. There was significant difference in survival rate between the two groups (P = 0.000). The 1-, 3-, 5-year survival rates of the 66 cases had been followed up was 91.0%, 78.2% and 74.1%, respectively. The malignancy risk grades of GIST was related to the survival rates on statistical analysis (P = 0.002). Significant differences were found in the survival rates between the patients with very low grade, low grade and high grade malignancy tumors (P = 0.012, 0.002).

CONCLUSIONSComplete tumor resection should be emphasized in primary GIST, and more attention should be paid to the initial surgical treatment. Extended surgical resection is required for tumors of higher malignancy risk. The indications of laparoscopic surgery in GIST should be selected with caution for tumor complete resection.