Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2025 Mar 21;14(7):2148.
doi: 10.3390/jcm14072148.

Gastroesophageal Neuroendocrine Tumors: Outcomes and Management

Christine Son  1   2 , Joshua Kalapala  3 , Jeff Leya  1 , Michelle Marion Popadiuk  1 , Mohammed K Atieh  1   2 , Daniel Havlichek 3rd  1   2 , Lawrence Feldman  1   4 , Paul Roach  1 , Promila Banerjee  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Gastroesophageal Neuroendocrine Tumors: Outcomes and Management

Christine Son et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) can arise in any organ and are most commonly found in the lungs and gastroenteropancreatic (GEP) system. GEP-NETs represent a small percentage of gastrointestinal cancers, and therefore, the standard treatment is not well-defined, especially for advanced disease. Our objective is to review GI NETs among veterans and analyze their therapeutic outcomes. Methods: A total of 61 GI NET cases were identified from our institution from 2019-2024. In total, twenty-seven review papers, ten population-based/multicenter/outcome studies, six case reports, and one case series were reviewed for the literature review. Results: The incidence of GI NETs at our institution was higher than the known epidemiology of GI NETs. Small intestine NETs were one of the most common sites of GEP-NETs at our institution, with only one of nineteen cases being grade 3 poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma. All cases of colonic and rectal NETs had good clinical outcomes consistent with findings from the literature. Most of the gastric NETs were type 1 and had benign courses of disease, except for one case with an intermediate grade and metastatic liver lesions. One case of esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma (E-NEC) showed a complete response to chemotherapy despite a significant tumor burden on presentation and high-grade pathology, while another case of ENEC had recurrent disease despite systemic therapy. Conclusions: While the role of surgery or endoscopic resection is limited to localized tumors, combined treatment with chemoradiation can significantly improve patient outcomes, especially in high-grade, poorly differentiated tumors. Further studies are needed to establish systemic (i.e., chemotherapy and radiation) treatment strategies for poorly differentiated GI NETs.

Keywords: gastroesophageal neuroendocrine tumors; neuroendocrine tumor outcomes; neuroendocrine tumors.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of 61 GI NET cases identified from the Hines Jr VA Hospital Cancer Registry from 2019 to 2024.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of 662 GI Tumor cases identified from the Hines Jr VA Hospital Cancer Registry from 2019 to 2024.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Individual GI NET incidence over a 5-year period (2019–2024).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Individual GI tumor incidence by primary organ site over a 5-year period (2019–2024).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Pape U.F., Böhmig M., Berndt U., Tiling N., Wiedenmann B., Plöckinger U. Survival and clinical outcome of patients with neuroendocrine tumors of the gastroenteropancreatic tract in a german referral center. Ann. New York Acad. Sci. 2004;1014:222–233. doi: 10.1196/annals.1294.025. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ilett E.E., Langer S.W., Olsen I.H., Federspiel B., Kjær A., Knigge U. Neuroendocrine Carcinomas of the Gastroenteropancreatic System: A Comprehensive Review. Diagnostics. 2015;5:119–176. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics5020119. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Sok C., Ajay P.S., Tsagkalidis V., Kooby D.A., Shah M.M. Management of Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumors: A Review. Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2024;31:1509–1518. doi: 10.1245/s10434-023-14712-9. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Liu M., Wei L., Liu W., Chen S., Guan M., Zhang Y., Guo Z., Liu R., Xie P. Trends in incidence and survival in patients with gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors: A SEER database analysis, 1977-2016. Front. Oncol. 2023;13:1079575. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1079575. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mastracci L., Rindi G., Grillo F., Solcia E., Campora M., Fassan M., Parente P., Vanoli A., La Rosa S. Neuroendocrine neoplasms of the esophagus and stomach. Pathologica. 2021;113:5–11. doi: 10.32074/1591-951X-229. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources