Gastric Cancer
Types of gastric cancer
If we use understandable terms, cancer occurs when the body’s cells change and begin to grow uncontrollably, spreading throughout the body.
In particular, gastric cancer originates in the stomach. There are several types of stomach cancer, so we are going to describe each of them according to their characteristics.
Adenocarcinoma
First, this group accounts for between 90 and 95% of all cases registered worldwide.
This type of gastric cancer is nothing more than the appearance of a malignant tumor in the epithelial tissue. Because it develops in the mucosa (the innermost layers of the stomach), it has also been called mucosal cancer.
Stomach adenoma represents the beginning of the development of gastric adenocarcinoma; however, most adenocarcinomas of the stomach do not show identifiable precursors.
From a pathological approach, the premalignant lesion in relation to gastric carcinoma is tubular or tubulopapillary adenoma, which presents dysplasias in different degrees (mild, moderate and severe).
Lymphoma
Then we find this term that describes a type of cancer that begins in the cells of the lymphatic system. Two groups are recognized: Hodgkin’s lymphoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
In any case, gastric lymphoma is rare and almost always of casual finding when a gastroscopy is performed.
It does not usually spread beyond the stomach and rarely metastasizes; so their prognosis is good, and many patients are completely cured if they receive adequate treatment in a timely manner.
When gastric lymphoma is not advanced and its origin has been associated with the bacterium Helicobacter Pylori, treatment for this infection can cause the tumor to disappear completely.
On the other hand, if it does not have to do with the bacteria, localized treatment through radiotherapy, immunotherapy, chemotherapy or surgery is the best choice.
Gastrointestinal stromal tumor
It is another type of cancer that begins in the digestive system; being relatively common in the stomach and small intestine.
It presents as the proliferation of a special type of nerve cells. These are found in the walls of the digestive organs and are part of the process of transporting food through the body.
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors do not cause symptoms if they are small, and they usually grow so slowly that they do not cause problems. However, as they get bigger, they can trigger symptoms such as:
Fatigue
Vomiting
Nausea
Abdominal pain
Loss of appetite
Feeling full with little food
Dark stools
Deformity that may be noticeable in the abdomen
Painful cramps after eating
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors appear in people of any age, but they are more common in adults and very rare in children.
On the other hand, despite being part of the classification of gastric cancer types, not all of them become malignant.
Carcinoid tumor
Carcinoid tumors (also called neuroendocrine tumors) usually start in the stomach, but they can also appear in the rectum, colon, lungs, small intestine, or appendix.
Their growth can be malignant or benign, and they produce amounts of hormone-like substances that give rise to carcinoid syndrome.
Some of these substances are serotonin, bradykinin, histamine and prostaglandins; which, when reaching high levels of concentration, cause a wide variety of symptoms.
When the carcinoid tumor is located in the pancreas or digestive tract, the substances it produces are released directly to the liver through the portal vein, where enzymes destroy them.
As a result, carcinoid tumors that occur in the digestive tract do not cause symptoms of carcinoid syndrome unless the tumors have spread to the liver; but this happens in a minimum of all cases.
How to detect gastric cancer?
Earlier we pointed out that gastric cancer is often detected by chance, due to an endoscopic or gastroscopic study.
In this sense, the ideal is for a doctor to perform the physical examination while reviewing the patient’s medical history, which allows to know the habits and/or the existence of signs and symptoms that make the presence of cancer suspect.
Obviously, the doctor will act with special emphasis during your examination, in case of identifying the presence of nodules, appearance of lymph nodes or enlarged organs, masses or fluid in the abdomen, among others.
In addition to the physical examination, blood tests, radiological, endoscopic, gastroscopic tests, radiographic studies with contrast, endoscopic echo, computed tomography, abdominal ultrasound and biopsies; will allow much more accurate data to be obtained based on the findings.
While all these tests are carried out based on a suspicion; There is still no test that, used systematically in healthy people, can diagnose gastric cancer early.
Risk factors for gastric cancer
Review the following risk factors and analyze each of them carefully. All of them increase the probability of suffering from stomach cancer:
How can gastric cancer be prevented?
Despite the taboos that are still woven around cancer today, having accurate information and correct advice from doctors specializing in the area will help you act from prevention.
Consequently, compliance with some preventive measures will induce you to make better decisions; which helps prevent gastric cancer. Among them we have:
Moderate alcohol consumption
Maintain a healthy diet
Manage excess weight
Avoid tobacco use
Exercising and maintaining regular physical activity
Taking preventive measures to avoid Helicobacter Pylori infection
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"My greatest motivation as a Surgical Oncologist in Panama is to have the opportunity to help each patient find multiple reasons to keep fighting."
- Dr. Roberto García
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