When would an individual become suspicious that his/her family may have a hereditary predisposition to GIST?
Any of the following features may suggest that a genetic predisposition to GIST is present: • One person in the family who was diagnosed with GIST at an unusually early age (generally before age 50) OR • One person in the family who has developed more than one separate primary (new GIST, not a metastasis) GIST tumor OR • One person in the family who has had a GIST and another cancer as well OR • Two or more close relatives with GIST OR • One person in the family with GIST who also has a close relative with another rare type of tumor OR • One person in the family with GIST who also has a personal or family history of unusual skin findings, multiple moles, or NF1 Not all families with these features will have a hereditary predisposition to GIST. Similarly, other families who have hereditary GIST may not exhibit these features. However, these combinations of GIST and other findings are rare enough to suggest that additional genetic evaluation may be warranted.
