Ruptured Small Intestinal Stromal Tumor Causing Concurrent Gastrointestinal and Intra-Abdominal Hemorrhage: A Case Report

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) originate from mesenchymal cells throughout the gastrointestinal tract. A common symptom is gastrointestinal hemorrhage; intra-abdominal hemorrhage is relatively rare. There are few reports of GIST presenting with both types of hemorrhage concurrently. A 77-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of melena and anemia (Hb: 4.7 g/dL). Computed tomography revealed a small bowel tumor and high-density fluid in both the small intestine and the pelvic floor. We diagnosed a small intestinal tumor with concurrent gastrointestinal and intra-abdominal hemorrhage, and performed emergency surgery. The tumor arose from the small intestine and was ruptured. We found hemorrhage in the pelvic cavity and performed partial small intestine resection. Pathological findings revealed that the tumor was positive for c-Kit protein and was diagnosed as GIST. The patient was discharged from the hospital on postoperative day 9 and received imatinib 1 month postoperatively. We experienced a very rare case of ruptured GIST originating from the small intestine associated with both gastrointestinal and intra-abdominal hemorrhage. We also reviewed the relevant literature.