Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Dec 28, 2024; 30(48): 5198-5204
Published online Dec 28, 2024. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i48.5198
Small cell lung carcinoma metastatic to the stomach: Commonly overlooked, limited treatment options
Terence N Moyana
Terence N Moyana, Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology, The Ottawa Hospital and University of Ottawa, Ottawa K1H 8L6, Ontario, Canada
Author contributions: Moyana TN is responsible for all aspects of the work, including conception, design, research, writing, and finalization of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Terence N Moyana, MD, Professor, Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology, The Ottawa Hospital and University of Ottawa, 501 Smyth Road, Ottawa K1H 8L6, Ontario, Canada. tmoyana@toh.ca
Received: August 26, 2024
Revised: October 23, 2024
Accepted: November 13, 2024
Published online: December 28, 2024
Processing time: 95 Days and 7.9 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: Small cell lung carcinoma metastatic to the stomach is rare and can thus be overlooked. Diagnosis requires conventional morphology supplemented by immunohistochemistry as well as appropriate imaging modalities. While outcomes are generally poor, palliative chemo/radiotherapy with surgery in select cases can improve survival and quality of life. The recent Food and Drug Administration approval of immune checkpoint inhibitors was a significant milestone as was the delineation of small cell lung carcinoma molecular subtypes. Liquid biopsies and biomarkers are increasingly being used in clinical trials for therapeutic stratification and prognostication.