Gastric Antral Vascular Ectasia in a Patient with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia on Imatinib Treatment: A Rare Case Report.

Imatinib is the standard first-line therapy for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and is generally well tolerated. Gastrointestinal adverse effects are common; however, gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE) is an extremely rare complication. We report a 77-year-old woman with chronic-phase CML who developed severe upper gastrointestinal bleeding 1 month after the initiation of imatinib therapy. Endoscopy revealed classic features of GAVE, and no alternative etiology was identified. Discontinuation of imatinib resulted in complete clinical and endoscopic resolution. Clinicians should consider this rare complication in patients receiving imatinib who present with unexplained anemia or gastrointestinal bleeding.