Gastric carcinoid tumor--incidental finding on endoscopy prior to bariatric surgery

A 32-year-old female patient with morbid obesity (body mass index 44.4) was submitted to upper digestive endoscopy performed routinely as a preoperative procedure in bariatric surgery. The examination identified multiple small polypoid lesions in the upper portion of the gastric body, some with small ulcerations. Anatomo-pathological findings were compatible with carcinoid tumor of the stomach. The patient was submitted to extended subtotal gastrectomy with loco-regional lymphadenectomy. Upper digestive endoscopy is performed routinely in some services for bariatric surgery, but its value has been questioned by some authors. In this case, endoscopic examination was of great importance, being responsible for a change in the surgical procedure. We did not find any report in the literature of a carcinoid tumor of the stomach in morbidly obese patients.