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Gastric cancer

Gastric cancer (also known as stomach cancer) is the condition where irregular cells appear in the lining of the stomach. There are many causes and risk factors linked to this, the most common cause being Helicobacter Pylori which is a bacterium that grows and eventually attacks the stomach lining. It is a common bacterium that causes infection, it is not known how or why this bacteria spreads but it is believed that they spread from one person’s mouth to another. Other factors that can provoke the situation is gastritis (inflammation of the stomach), pernicious anaemia (vitamin B12 deficiency due to the immune system attacking the cells in the stomach) smoking, bad diets and obesity. It can also be a hereditary issue.

SYMPTOMS OF GASTRIC CANCER

Gastric cancer is difficult to diagnose at first as the symptoms can be related to other illness and disorders in the early stages. An early symptom that is related is heartburn, especially if it is something that you do not regularly suffer with. If the cancer has progressed and spread, it can cause bloating, stomach pains, vomiting, diarrhoea, constipation, weight loss and fatigue. If you are experiencing abnormal heartburn regularly or indigestion, it is recommended that you go to see your doctor immediately.

Treatments

Treatment for gastric cancer all depends on what stage of cancer you have; how healthy you are overall and what you would prefer to do.

Surgery

If the cancer has not spread then a surgery will be done to remove the cancerous part of the esophagus or stomach.

  • Early-stage removal from stomach lining — an endoscopic mucosal resection is a procedure which requires the use of lighted tubes with cameras attached, passed through your throat and into your stomach, and then the surgeon will use special tools to take out the cancer as well as some healthy tissue from your stomach lining.
  • Subtotal gastrectomy — this is the removal of a portion of the stomach that has been affected by the cancer.
  • Total gastrectomy — this is the removal of the entire stomach including some surrounding tissue. Your esophagus will then be connected to your small intestine to allow the movement of food through your digestive system.
  • Removal of lymph nodes — the surgeon will remove some lymph nodes in order to examine them and look for more cancer cells.
  • Surgery to relieve symptoms — sometimes cancer cannot be cured or removed and so the surgeon may remove part of the stomach in order to relieve pain and make you more comfortable.

Radiation Therapy

This therapy requires the use of high-powered beams of energy such as x-rays to kill off cancer cells. It works by having you lie down on a table and a machine moves around you. This therapy can be used before surgery in order to shrink a tumor and can be used after surgery to destroy any cancer cells that remain. In more severe cases radiation might be recommended to relieve symptoms.

Chemotherapy

This therapy is the use of drugs to kill off cancer cells. The drugs travel throughout your body and kill the cancer cells that may have spread further than your stomach. Again, this treatment can be given before surgery to reduce the size of the tumor or afterwards to kill off any remaining cancer cells.

Targeted Drug Therapy

This treatment attacks the abnormalities inside cancer cells and the drugs target these abnormal cells and kill the cancerous ones off while recognizing the difference between healthy cells and cancerous ones. These drugs may include:

  • Trastuzumb (Herception)
  • Ramucirumab (Cyramza)
  • Imatinib (Gleevec)
  • Sunitinib (Sutent)
  • Regorafenib (Stivarga)

This treatment is often used alongside and in combination with chemotherapy drugs.

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