Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignant diseases. It can develop anywhere in the stomach and spread to other organs, especially the esophagus, lungs, and liver.
Up to 800,000 people die every year from stomach cancer worldwide.
The reasons
Among the factors contributing to the development of stomach cancer are dietary and environmental factors, smoking, infectious and genetic factors.
The dependence of the incidence of stomach cancer on the lack of ascorbic acid intake, excessive salt intake, pickled, overcooked, smoked foods, spicy foods, animal oil has been proven. Among the causes of stomach cancer is the abuse of alcohol, especially vodka. There is a direct correlation between the incidence of stomach cancer and the content of copper, molybdenum, cobalt in the soil, and the reverse – zinc and manganese.
Symptoms
Gastric cancer in the early stages, as a rule, has unexpressed clinical manifestations and nonspecific symptoms (dyspepsia, loss of appetite).
Other symptoms of stomach cancer (the so-called “small signs” syndrome) – asthenia, aversion to meat food, anemia, weight loss, “gastric discomfort” are more often observed in common forms of the process. Feeling of fullness in the stomach after taking a small amount of food.
Diagnosis
Methods for diagnosing stomach cancer are:
- gastroscopy is the diagnostic method of choice (due to the possibility of not only visualizing altered areas of the gastric mucosa, but also performing a tissue biopsy for subsequent evaluation)
- fluoroscopy of the stomach with oral administration of a contrast product (barium sulfate). One of the main methods for determining the localization and extent of damage to the stomach wall.
Treatment
Depending on the stage of stomach cancer, there are various methods of treatment. The choice of treatment method depends on many factors. Of course, the location and stage of the tumor are important factors. Other factors include age, general condition and personal wishes.
The main treatments for stomach cancer are: surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Often the best approach to treatment may be the use of 2 or more methods. The main goal of treatment is to completely get rid of the disease. In the event that a complete cure is improbable, therapy is aimed at relieving the symptoms of the disease, such as eating disorders, pain, or bleeding.