Pediatric Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors and Neuroendocrine Tumors: Advances in Surgical Management

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors and neuroendocrine tumors in adult and pediatric populations differ immensely. Despite these established differences, the extreme rarity of gastrointestinal stromal tumors and neuroendocrine tumors in the pediatric population has resulted in the lack of consensus management guidelines, making optimal surgical approaches unclear. Comprehensive management principles to guide surgical approaches in adult literature are extensive. However, these are still lacking for pediatric patients. International cooperation to develop standardized pediatric-specific guidelines is urgently warranted in the future. This article highlights the vast differences between adult and pediatric parameters and provides recommendations on optimal and novel surgical approaches in children.