Gastric adenomyoma presenting as melena

A research team from China reported a case of 68-year-old man with gastric adenomyoma (AM) admitted to hospital for melana. They suggest that although gastric AM is rare, it should be considered in differential diagnosis of extramucosal gastric tumor.

Gastric adenomyoma (AM) is a rare, benign tumor, characteristically composed of glands and cysts, lined by columnar, flattened epithelia and a prominent smooth muscle stroma. Patients with gastric AM may be asymptomatic, or present as nonspecific gastrointestinal symptoms.

A research article to be published on April 21, 2010 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team led by Dr. Wen-Yong Sun from Zhejiang Cancer Hospital reported a case of gastric AM seen in a 68-year-old man with a 1-week history of melena.

Their results showed that gastric AM should be always considered in the differential diagnosis of extramucosal gastric lesions. Despite the development of modern diagnostic modalities, including computed tomography and endoscopic ultrasonography, its diagnosis remains challenging. If in doubt, frozen section can help to avoid unnecessary radical operation.