What are the Symptoms of Stomach Cancer?

Stomach cancer is more common in some parts of the world. Such as Japan, Malaysia, Chile, Iceland. It is two times more common in men than women. The most common ages are 50-60 years old. In addition, the frequency increases in societies with low socioeconomic status. It ranks first in cancer-related deaths in the world. The inclusion of salty and smoked foods in the diet increases the risk of stomach cancer.

What are the Symptoms of Stomach Cancer?

Stomach cancer usually progresses insidiously. Abdominal discomfort in the stomach area is the most common symptom. Common symptoms include;

• Weight loss and abdominal pain,
• Anorexia,
• Weakness,
• Nausea,
  
• vomiting,
  
• Patients presenting with symptoms such as bloating in the stomach,
  
• Liver enlargement,
• fluid accumulation in the abdomen or jaundice

Common complaints such as indigestion, bloating and loss of appetite can also be seen in stomach cancer. Difficulty in swallowing can be seen in cancers that occupy the entrance of the stomach, and vomiting in cancers that occupy the outlet. Since it progresses insidiously without giving any special symptoms and will have reached advanced stages when it presents, the stomach should be visually examined by performing endoscopy in all kinds of digestive problems in an adult.

What are the Diagnosis and Stages of Stomach Cancer?

Upper gastrointestinal Endoscopy is the diagnostic method. With this method, the inner surface of the stomach is completely monitored and the diagnosis is made by taking biopsy from suspicious areas. The rate of diagnosis is over 95%.
After the diagnosis is finalized, the degree of the disease is determined by computed tomography, magnetic resonance, and abdominal ultrasonography. Another diagnostic method is laparoscopy (looking into the abdomen with a lighted camera under general anesthesia).

• Stage 0: Cancer is found only in the inner layer of the stomach.
• Stage I: In case of any of the following:
• The tumor has spread only to the submucosa. Cancer cells can be found in up to 6 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has spread to the muscle layer or subserosa. Cancer cells have not spread to lymph nodes or other organs.

• Stage II: If any of the following occur:
• The tumor is only in the submucosa. Cancer cells have spread to 7-15 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has spread to the muscle layer or subserosa. Cancer cells have spread to 1-6 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has pierced the outer layer of the stomach. Cancer cells have not spread to lymph nodes or other organs.

• Stage III: If any of the following occur:
• Tumor muscle layer or spread to the subserosa. Cancer cells are located in 7-15 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has pierced the outer layer of the stomach. Cancer cells have spread to 1-15 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has spread to nearby organs such as the liver or spleen. There are no lymph nodes or distant organ metastases.

• Stage IV: In case of any of the following:
• The cancer cells have spread to more than 15 lymph nodes.
• The tumor has spread to surrounding organs and at least 1 lymph node.
  
• Cancer cells have spread to distant organs.
  

How Is Stomach Cancer Treated?

Stomach cancer is treated by a multidisciplinary team. This team includes medical oncologists, gastroenterologists, surgeons and radiation oncologists. The treatment is planned according to the size and location of the tumor, the stage of the disease and the general health status. Treatment of stomach cancer consists of surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
In advanced stages, chemotherapy and radiation therapy can be applied in addition to surgery. If it has spread to distant organs, that is, in the fourth stage disease, we avoid surgery. In short, it is a good feature that gastric cancer can be treated with surgery. Other treatments aim to make the patient live as long and comfortably as possible, not to completely eradicate the disease. They can be seen in the entire gastrointestinal tract, but their typical localization is the stomach. They usually attract attention with bleeding in the stomach and intestinal obstruction or bleeding in the small intestine. Bleeding can be severe, or it can manifest as chronic blood loss and anemia. Their main treatment is surgical removal of the tumor. Oncological treatment can also be applied before and/or after surgery in high-risk tumors.

Stomach Cancer Risk Factors What

• Age: Most cases are 72 years or older.
• Gender: More common in men.
• Race: Asian and African common in society.
• Diet: People who eat foods rich in smoked, salted, pickled or excessively salty foods have an increased risk of stomach cancer.
• Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection: HP is a type of bacteria that usually lives in the stomach and causes ulcers. It has been determined that the risk of gastric cancer increases 6 times in the presence of antibodies against HP infection.
• Smoking: The risk is higher in smokers.
• Previous gastric surgery
• Presence of chronic atrophic gastritis (long-term inflammation of the stomach lining)
• Pernicious anemia (a blood disease that affects the stomach and leads to malabsorption of vitamin B12) and a family history of polyps increase the risk.

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