[Gastrointestinal stroma tumours (GIST) and the gastroenterologist].

Gastrointestinal stromal tumours are frequently incidental findings at gastrointestinal endoscopy. The most common location is the stomach. Larger tumours may cause abdominal pain or obscure or overt bleeding. Diagnosis and distinction from other submucosal tumours is usually done by the means of endoscopic ultrasound with fine needle aspiration. Lesions with a diameter of more than 3 cm at endosonography are associated with a high malignant potential. Today, endoscopic resection of gastrointestinal stromal tumours is not (yet) routinely performed.