Stomach cancer forms in tissues lining the stomach. Also called gastric cancer. Stomach cancer can affect nearby organs and lymph nodes:
A stomach tumor can grow through the stomach's outer layer into nearby organs, such as the pancreas, esophagus, or intestine.
Stomach cancer cells can spread through the blood to the liver, lungs, and other organs. Cancer cells also can spread through the lymphatic system to lymph nodes all over the body. When cancer spreads from its original place to another part of the body, the new tumor has the same kind of abnormal cells and the same name as the original tumor. For example, if stomach cancer spreads to the liver, the cancer cells in the liver are actually stomach cancer cells. The disease is metastatic stomach cancer, not liver cancer. For that reason, it is treated as stomach cancer, not liver cancer. Doctors call the new tumor "distant" or metastatic disease.
No one knows the exact causes of stomach cancer. Doctors often cannot explain why one person develops this disease and another does not. Research has shown that people with certain risk factors are more likely than others to develop stomach cancer. A risk factor is something that may increase the chance of developing a disease. Studies have found the following risk factors for stomach cancer:
Age: Most people with this disease are 72 or older.
Sex: Men are more likely than women to develop stomach cancer.
Race: Stomach cancer is more common in Asian, Pacific Islander, Hispanic, and African Americans than in non-Hispanic white Americans.
Diet: Studies suggest that people who eat a diet high in foods that are smoked, salted, or pickled may be at increased risk for stomach cancer. On the other hand, eating fresh fruits and vegetables may protect against this disease.
Helicobacter pylori infection: H. pylori is a type of bacteria that commonly lives in the stomach. H. pylori infection increases the risk of stomach inflammation and stomach ulcers. It also increases the risk of stomach cancer, but only a small number of infected people develop stomach cancer. Although infection increases the risk, cancer is not contagious. You cannot catch stomach cancer from another person who has it.
Smoking: People who smoke are more likely to develop stomach cancer than people who do not smoke.
Certain health problems: Conditions that cause inflammation or other problems in the stomach may increase the risk of Stomach cancer
Stomach surgery
Chronic gastritis (long-term inflammation of the stomach lining)
Pernicious anemia (a blood disease that affects the stomach)
Family history: A rare type of stomach cancer runs in some families.
Most people who have known risk factors do not develop stomach cancer. For example, many people have H. pylori in their stomach but never develop cancer. On the other hand, people who do develop the disease sometimes have no known risk factors. If you think you may be at risk, you should talk with your doctor. Your doctor may be able to suggest ways to reduce your risk and can plan a schedule for checkups.
Getting a Second Opinion
Before starting treatment, you might want a second opinion about your diagnosis and treatment plan. Many insurance companies cover a second opinion if you or your doctor requests it. It may take some time and effort to gather medical records and arrange to see another doctor. Usually it is not a problem to take several weeks to get a second opinion. In most cases, the delay in starting treatment will not make treatment less effective. To make sure, you should discuss this delay with your doctor. Sometimes people with stomach cancer need treatment right away.
There are a number of ways to find a doctor for a second opinion.
Treatment Methods
The choice of treatment depends mainly on the size and place of the tumor, the stage of disease, and your general health. Treatment for stomach cancer may involve surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy. Many people have more than one type of treatment. Your doctor can describe your treatment choices and the expected results. You and your doctor can work together to develop a treatment plan that meets your needs.
Cancer treatment is either local therapy or systemic therapy:
Local therapy: Surgery and radiation therapy are local therapies. They remove or destroy cancer in or near the stomach. When stomach cancer has spread to other parts of the body, local therapy may be used to control the disease in those specific areas.
Systemic therapy: Chemotherapy is systemic therapy. The drug enters the bloodstream and destroys or controls cancer throughout the body. Because cancer treatments often damage healthy cells and tissues, side effects are common. Side effects depend mainly on the type and extent of the treatment. Side effects may not be the same for each person, and they may change from one treatment session to the next.
Before treatment starts, your health care team will explain possible side effects and suggest ways to help you manage them. NCI provides helpful booklets about cancer treatments and coping with side effects. These include Chemotherapy and You, Radiation Therapy and You, and Eating Hints for Cancer Patients.
At any stage of disease, supportive care is available to relieve the side effects of treatment, to control pain and other symptoms, and to ease emotional concerns. Information about such care is available on NCI's Web site at http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/coping, and from Information Specialists at 1-800-4-CANCER or LiveHelp (http://www.cancer.gov/cis).
You may want to talk to your doctor about taking part in a clinical trial, a research study of new treatment methods.