When tumor forms in the lining of the stomach, it causes Gastric (stomach) cancer. Gastric cancer grows slowly in the stomach over many years. Though there is no specific reason for the formation of tumors in the stomach, the higher risk comes from a bacterial infection, H.pylori. Gut inflammation called gastritis, pernicious anemia, and polyps in the stomach are also a few of the significant causes of gastric cancer.
Symptoms of Gastric Cancer
- Indigestion or heartburn.
- Bloating after the meal.
- Slight nausea.
- Loss of appetite.
- Unexplainable weight loss
- Vomiting or trouble swallowing.
- Blood in stool.
All these symptoms do not point to cancer only, whereas, they should be watched and if they persist for more than a month, you should see a doctor.
Diagnosis of Gastric Cancer
Gastric or stomach cancer cannot be traced with regular checkups. When you visit Premier Oncology, we perform physical investigation and also introspects family history to verify the risk factors. Blood tests, upper endoscopy, upper GI, CT scan, and biopsy are performed one after the other to confirm the diagnosis of gastric cancer. These investigations define the stage of gastric cancer.
Stage 0: A group of unhealthy cells in the stomach lining may turn into cancer. In such cases, surgery will help where the doctors remove the tumor as well as lymph nodes.
Stage 1: The tumor spread from the stomach lining to nearby lymph nodes. Along with surgery, chemotherapy is suggested to destroy the remaining cells.
Stage 2: At this stage, cancer spread into the deep layers of the stomach. Surgery followed by few chemotherapy sessions will help in treatment.
Stage 3: Cancer spread to all layers of the stomach and areas of the spleen or colon. The post-surgical treatment will be longer due to followed sittings of chemotherapy or radiation.
Stage 4: In the last stage, cancer spread to distant organs such as the liver, lungs, or brain. It gets critical to recovering from this stage.
Based on the stage of gastric cancer, our doctors will advise the treatment.