Immature gastric teratoma of childhood: a case report and review of the literature.

Teratomas are infrequent germ cell tumors of childhood. They may arise from any organ but the majority are found in the ovary, testis, sacrococcygeal region and mediastinum. Gastric teratoma is rare, accounting for less than 1% of all teratomas (1–3). Immature teratomas are pathologically distinct from the benign and malignant teratomas with their embryonic-appearing neuroglial and neuroepithelial elements. AFP and HCG may not increase if there are no malignant germ cell components (4,5). The diagnostic utility of these oncofetoproteins is less in young children because of the elevated physiologic serum levels (6,7). We report a 5-month-old male with immature gastric teratoma who had a complete surgical resection and adjuvant chemotherapy. The need for adjuvant chemotherapy in this case is discussed.