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C49.A ICD-10-CM Code: Gastrointestinal stromal tumor

Compare with another code for C49.ACheck this code on a claim

Billing Status: NO. This is a non-billable ICD-10-CM code: report a more specific billable code beneath it.

Coding at a Glance

Official instructions
10 inclusion terms · 5 Excludes1 · 7 Excludes2

What these terms mean →

Not billable · FY2027A non-billable heading in the tabular list: report a more specific code beneath it.

What you need to know

Source: CMS/NCHS Official ICD-10-CM tabular notes, quoted. From the CMS/NCHS tabular list for the release in force. A note the category or block publishes applies to this code too, and is marked with where it comes from.

Excludes1from C49Not reported with this code unless documented as unrelated

+1 more in Instructions

Excludes2from C49Not included here; may be reported together
  • Kaposi's sarcoma of soft tissue (C46.1)
  • malignant neoplasm of heart (C38.0)
  • malignant neoplasm of peripheral nerves and autonomic nervous system (C47.-)
  • malignant neoplasm of peritoneum (C48.2)

+3 more in Instructions

Includesfrom C49What C49 covers
  • malignant neoplasm of blood vessel
  • malignant neoplasm of bursa
  • malignant neoplasm of cartilage
  • malignant neoplasm of fascia

+6 more in Instructions

Where it sits Source: CMS/NCHS

Under:Chapter 2: NeoplasmsC00-C96 Malignant neoplasmsC00-C75 Malignant neoplasms, stated or presumed to be primary (of specified sites), and certain specified histologies, except neuroendocrine, and of lymphoid, hematopoietic and related tissueC45-C49 Malignant neoplasms of mesothelial and soft tissueC49 Malignant neoplasm of other connective and soft tissue

Codes under C49.A (7)

  • C49.A0Gastrointestinal stromal tumor, unspecified siteBillable
  • C49.A1Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of esophagusBillable
  • C49.A2Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of stomachBillable
  • C49.A3Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of small intestineBillable
  • C49.A4Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of large intestineBillable
  • C49.A5Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of rectumBillable
  • C49.A9Gastrointestinal stromal tumor of other sitesBillable

Most relevant related codes MedCoder-derived

Read off the official notes above and this code’s own position in the tabular list. Which to report is a documentation question; Compare shows the two side by side.

CompareCheck ClaimView Related Codes

Coding instructions

Official Tabular Instructional Notes: the inclusion, exclusion and sequencing notes published for C49.A in the official ICD-10-CM tabular list, quoted as published.

Source: CMS/CDC — ICD-10-CM Tabular ListRelease: FY2027Effective: October 1, 2026

Trace:FY2027 changesChange historyRelease, file and checksum

Notes without a marker are published on C49.A itself; “inherited from” names the category or block whose note applies here.

Includes

Conditions the official ICD-10-CM tabular list includes under this code.

  • malignant neoplasm of blood vessel
  • malignant neoplasm of bursa
  • malignant neoplasm of cartilage
  • malignant neoplasm of fascia
  • malignant neoplasm of fat
  • malignant neoplasm of ligament, except uterine
  • malignant neoplasm of lymphatic vessel
  • malignant neoplasm of muscle
  • malignant neoplasm of synovia
  • malignant neoplasm of tendon (sheath)

Source: inherited from C49

Excludes1 — Not Coded Here

Conditions generally not reported together with this code (Excludes1) -- an error unless the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

Source: inherited from C49

Excludes2 — Not Included Here

Conditions not covered by this code, but which may be reported alongside it when both are present.

Source: inherited from C49

Coder workflow for C49.A

MedCoder structured workflow — derived from this code’s own official record

Before you code C49.A

  1. C49.A is not reportable as written. Select the more specific code beneath it that the documentation supports. Codes are reported to the highest level of specificity the classification provides (Guidelines I.B.2).

    ReviewC49.A0, C49.A1, C49.A2, C49.A3, C49.A4, C49.A5, C49.A9

    See the relationships section · Guide: How to choose an ICD-10-CM code →

  2. Confirm the documented site and behavior (this code’s block classifies malignant neoplasms), whether the site is primary or secondary, and whether the malignancy is current or a personal history: a previously excised malignancy with no further treatment and no evidence of disease is history, not current disease. Verify the site against the Table of Neoplasms. Neoplasm chapter guidelines (Guidelines I.C.2.a, I.C.2.d, I.C.2.m).

    See the Table of Neoplasms entries · Guide: Active cancer vs history of cancer →

  3. Check the Excludes1 note: if the documentation supports a condition named there, do not simply proceed with the code beneath C49.A. Excludes1 conditions are not reported together with this code unless the record shows they are unrelated (Guidelines I.A.12.a).

    See the official tabular notes

Choose the right path

  1. Does the documentation support one of the more specific codes beneath C49.A?
    Yes → Select that code and continue the checks below on its own page.
    No → C49.A cannot be reported as written. Where the codes beneath it include an unspecified code, that code applies when the record goes no further; otherwise query for the missing detail.

    ReviewC49.A0, C49.A1, C49.A2, C49.A3, C49.A4, C49.A5, C49.A9

  2. Does the documentation support a condition named in C49.A’s Excludes1 note?
    Yes → Do not simply proceed: review the excluded code. Both are reported only when the record shows the two conditions are unrelated.
    No → Continue.

    ReviewC32.3, C30.0, C50

Report the code beneath C49.A that the documentation supports, not C49.A itself. Then confirm that code is valid for the date of service on its own page.

Documentation check

The provider’s diagnostic statement
Codes are assigned from the provider’s documented diagnosis, not from clinical criteria, test values or a medication list (Guidelines I.A.19).
Anatomical site
At the most specific level the record states; a site the classification separates cannot be assumed from a procedure or a measurement.
Behavior and current-versus-history status
Malignant, in situ, benign or uncertain; primary or secondary; current disease or personal history (Guidelines I.C.2.m).

Official instructions as workflow

  • Excludes1 — check before selecting C49.A(5 notes)

    Coding workflow: If the documentation supports a condition named in this note, do not simply proceed with C49.A: the two are not reported together. The one exception is when the record shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

    CompareC32.3, C30.0, C50

    See the official tabular notes · Guidelines I.A.12.a

  • Excludes2 — not part of C49.A(7 notes)

    Coding workflow: The conditions named in this note are not included in C49.A. When the record documents both, both may be reported; the note is a boundary, not a prohibition.

    CompareC46.1, C38.0, C47, C48.2, C48.0, C57.3

    See the official tabular notes · Guidelines I.A.12.b

Coding decision scenarios

Pattern scenarios for this code’s structure — decision rules, not clinical cases

Documentation: Both the condition C49.A describes and a condition named in its Excludes1 note are documented for the same encounter.

Coding question: Can both codes be reported?

Path: Review the Excludes1 note and the excluded code, and look for a provider statement on whether the two conditions are related.

Reason: Excludes1 means the two are not coded together; the exception is when the record shows the conditions are unrelated to each other (Guidelines I.A.12.a).

ReviewC32.3, C30.0, C50

Every row is derived from this code’s own record — its title, tabular notes, 7th-character family and same-category siblings — with fixed MedCoder wording; nothing is inferred about a patient. The official notes and guideline text are in the sections each row links to, and they control.

Don’t confuse C49.A with…

MedCoder analysis — pairs from this code’s official notes, distinctions written by MedCoder

The codes most likely to be picked instead of C49.A — named in its own official notes, or sharing its laterality or encounter family — with what separates them and which documentation moves the case. Each links to the full comparison.

  • C40— Excludes1 conflict (Excludes1 — generally not reported together)

    Not coded here — the tabular list excludes this pair for the same encounter.

    Not reported together with this code, except where the two conditions are documented as unrelated.

    What moves you there: Documentation of articular moves the case to C40; the two are not reported together unless documented as unrelated.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C40 →

  • C41— Excludes1 conflict (Excludes1 — generally not reported together)

    Not coded here — the tabular list excludes this pair for the same encounter.

    Not reported together with this code, except where the two conditions are documented as unrelated.

    What moves you there: Documentation of articular moves the case to C41; the two are not reported together unless documented as unrelated.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C41 →

  • C32.3— Excludes1 conflict (Excludes1 — generally not reported together)

    Not coded here — the tabular list excludes this pair for the same encounter.

    Not reported together with this code, except where the two conditions are documented as unrelated.

    What moves you there: Documentation of larynx moves the case to C32.3; the two are not reported together unless documented as unrelated.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C32.3 →

  • C30.0— Excludes1 conflict (Excludes1 — generally not reported together)

    Not coded here — the tabular list excludes this pair for the same encounter.

    Not reported together with this code, except where the two conditions are documented as unrelated.

    What moves you there: Documentation of nose moves the case to C30.0; the two are not reported together unless documented as unrelated.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C30.0 →

  • C50— Excludes1 conflict (Excludes1 — generally not reported together)

    Not coded here — the tabular list excludes this pair for the same encounter.

    Not reported together with this code, except where the two conditions are documented as unrelated.

    What moves you there: Documentation of malignant neoplasm of connective tissue of breast moves the case to C50; the two are not reported together unless documented as unrelated.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C50 →

  • C49.6— Specificity relationship (Review)

    Overlapping diagnoses in the same category.

    Overlapping codes in the same category — the documentation decides which is the more specific fit.

    What moves you there: A record that documents no more than “Malignant neoplasm of connective and soft tissue of trunk, unspecified” takes C49.6; specificity in the record moves it back here.

    Full comparison: C49.A vs C49.6 →

Relationships are read from this code's own official notes, its laterality siblings and its encounter family; the wording of each distinction is MedCoder editorial, and the documentation named in each “what moves you there” line is the official note phrase or sibling title itself. Source: CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes; ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a.

Coding context

Guidelines, coding notes, decision aids, relationships (with MS-DRG and CCSR classification), hierarchy, HCC, coverage and the context map: what a coder reaches for after the core. Each section names whether it is official source data, a MedCoder-derived relationship or MedCoder editorial.

Code Overview

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (C49.A). A more specific billable subcode must be selected for claims submission.

MedCoder summary Summary composed by MedCoder from this code's official ICD-10-CM record. The tabular instructional notes themselves appear verbatim below.

Verify Before Coding

From the code registry, the Medicare Code Editor, and the MS-DRG Definitions Manual. Check it against a full claim in Claim Check.

Relationships & Classification

MedCoder-derived relationships — computed from published CMS and AHRQ datasets

Other codes that name C49.A or its code family, from the CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes. Tabular-note edges are stored at the code family level that carries each note.

Referenced by 3 Excludes1 notes: C40 — Malignant neoplasm of bone and articular cartilage of limbs (via C49.-), C40-C41 — Malignant neoplasms of bone and articular cartilage (C40-C41) (via C49.-), C41 — Malignant neoplasm of bone and articular cartilage of other and unspecified sites (via C49.-).

These codes’ tabular lists mark this diagnosis as mutually exclusive — not reported together unless the conditions are documented as unrelated.

Referenced by 13 Excludes2 notes: C15 — Malignant neoplasm of esophagus, C15-C26 — Malignant neoplasms of digestive organs (C15-C26), C16 — Malignant neoplasm of stomach, C17 — Malignant neoplasm of small intestine, C18 — Malignant neoplasm of colon, C19 — Malignant neoplasm of rectosigmoid junction, C20 — Malignant neoplasm of rectum, C21 — Malignant neoplasm of anus and anal canal, C22 — Malignant neoplasm of liver and intrahepatic bile ducts, C23 — Malignant neoplasm of gallbladder, C24 — Malignant neoplasm of other and unspecified parts of biliary tract, C25 — Malignant neoplasm of pancreas, C26 — Malignant neoplasm of other and ill-defined digestive organs.

These codes’ tabular lists name this diagnosis as distinct — both may be reported when both are documented.

Referenced by 1 Code First instruction: M63 — Disorders of muscle in diseases classified elsewhere (via C49.-).

Each of these codes carries a Code First note naming this condition — when that code is reported, THIS code is sequenced first, ahead of it.

Related Codes

Same Index main term, other category

The ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries files this code under the main term “Tumor”; these codes share that main term but sit in a different category of the Tabular List.

A52.17 — General paresis (syphilitic, brain), C18.1 — Malignant neoplasm of appendix (mucocarcinoid, unspecified site), C22.4 — Other sarcomas of liver (mesodermal, mixed, liver), C22.7 — Other specified carcinomas of liver (embryonal, liver), C24.0 — Malignant neoplasm of extrahepatic bile duct (Klatskin's), C25.4 — Malignant neoplasm of endocrine pancreas (G cell, malignant, pancreas), C30.0 — Malignant neoplasm of nasal cavity (neurogenic olfactory), C41.0 — Malignant neoplasm of bones of skull and face (odontogenic, malignant, upper jaw), C41.1 — Malignant neoplasm of mandible (odontogenic, malignant), C54.9 — Malignant neoplasm of corpus uteri, unspecified (Müllerian, mixed, unspecified site), C56 — Malignant neoplasm of ovary (Brenner, malignant), C56.9 — Malignant neoplasm of unspecified ovary (yolk sac, unspecified site, female), C62.90 — Malignant neoplasm of unspecified testis, unspecified whether descended or undescended (yolk sac, unspecified site, male), C64 — Malignant neoplasm of kidney, except renal pelvis (Wilms'), C71.9 — Malignant neoplasm of brain, unspecified (neuroectodermal, primitive, unspecified site), C73 — Malignant neoplasm of thyroid gland (Hurthle cell, malignant), C74.0 — Malignant neoplasm of cortex of adrenal gland (adrenal, cortical, malignant), C75.4 — Malignant neoplasm of carotid body (carotid body, malignant), C75.5 — Malignant neoplasm of aortic body and other paraganglia (aortic body, malignant), C79.6 — Secondary malignant neoplasm of ovary (Krukenberg's), +90 more

Contextual Map

Every relationship of C49.A in one view: hierarchy, official tabular instructions in both directions, clinical classification, risk adjustment, MS-DRG participation, index terms and change history — each edge carrying the CMS source it derives from.

Run C49.A with these 12 related codes in Claim Check

Hierarchy

Referenced by Excludes1 notes

Referenced by Excludes2 notes (13)

Referenced by Code First instructions

Nearest codes (23)

Change history

Reference

Index terms and tables, published questions and FAQ, every source behind this page with its release and checksum, the date-of-service check and the complete change history.

Common coding questions

MedCoder editorial

Can C49.A be billed directly?

No. C49.A (Gastrointestinal stromal tumor) is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code. A more specific billable subcode must be selected based on clinical documentation.

Sources for this page

Codes, titles, notes, index terms and mappings on this page are transcribed from the datasets below. Relationships MedCoder computed and text MedCoder wrote are labelled where they appear.

Code, title, tabular notes and index terms Official source data
CMS/CDC ICD-10-CM FY2027 tabular list, index and tables, effective October 1, 2026 Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Claim edits Official source data
CMS Definitions of Medicare Code Edits — v44.0 (October 2026) Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Change history and date-of-service validity Official source data
CMS ICD-10-CM release addenda, ingested release by release into the change ledger Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Comparisons, relationships and the contextual map MedCoder-derived relationship
Computed by MedCoder from the tabular notes and tables above; every derived relationship is marked as derived where it appears
Summary and FAQ answers MedCoder editorial explanation
Written by MedCoder to explain the sources above: drafted with AI assistance, checked by a person against the release files, and labelled as MedCoder text where it appears. Not official text.

Current data releases:ICD-10-CM FY2027 · ICD-10-PCS FY2027 · HCPCS October 2026 · MS-DRG v44 · Medicare Code Editor v44.0 · NCCI PTP Q4 2026 · MUE Q4 2026 · NCD code lists 2026-01 · LCD export September 28, 2026 · All releases and sources

Labels on this page: Official source data · MedCoder-derived relationship · MedCoder editorial explanation. How to read the labels · All data sources and release dates · CMS coding rules

Cite this page

Reference this page in a research guide, syllabus or article. The release is included because code content changes each year.

MedCoder.ai. "C49.A — Gastrointestinal stromal tumor." ICD-10-CM FY2027. https://medcoder.ai/icd10/code/c49.a-gastrointestinal-stromal-tumor

Change history

  • FY2017 — October 1, 2016
    Added to the code set
    Gastrointestinal stromal tumor
    FY2017 changes

Nearest Codes in This Family

Official ICD-10-CM classifications closest to C49.A in its code family, with their registry titles.

View all codes in the C49 family