Cancer Of Stomach - Know How To Diagnose It!

Cancer is a disease everyone dreads. It is not only difficult to come to terms with this but in many cases, it can be downright traumatic. Cancer is a medical condition wherein the growth of abnormal cells cannot be controlled. In some kind of cancers, the cells spread to other tissues making the situation worse.

Stomach cancer usually occurs across the lining of the stomach that is responsible for producing mucus. This form of cancer is known as adenocarcinoma. It has been witnessed that cancer occurring in the body of the stomach has drastically reduced. Instead, the cases of cancer occurring in the upper portion of the stomach have increased. This area of the cancer is termed as gastroesophageal junction.

What are the symptoms of stomach cancer?
Symptoms and visible signs of gastroesophageal junction cancer include the following:

• Fatigue throughout the day
• Feeling of bloating just after a meal.
• Loss of appetite or feeling full after consuming very little food
• Sharp to dull to constant pain in the stomach
• Frequent but unexplained nausea
• The persistent problem of indigestion.
• Frequent heartburn
• Frequent and persisting vomiting. This is applicable before and after dinner
• A feeling of weakness throughout the day

Causes of stomach cancer:
Stomach cancer like any other cancer occurs when there is a mutation occurs in a cell. The mutation forces the cell to rapidly divide and grow. Like other cells, they do not die. They also affect the nearby organ and thus spreads throughout the body. Gastroesophageal junction cancer is closely related to smoking, obesity and gastrointestinal reflux disease. Studies have shown a high correlation between cancer in the main body of the stomach and salted foods.

What are the risks involved?
The primary risk for this condition is obesity and GERD. Factors that can increase the risk of stomach cancer include the following:

• Smoked food or a diet that is rich in salt.
• A family history of stomach cancer.
• Polyps in the stomach.
• A long history of inflammation of the stomach.
• A diet that is not rich in vegetables and fruits.
• Food infection with a fungus called aflatoxin.

Diagnosis of Stomach Cancer:
Diagnosis is done by a series of tests. Th first one being upper endoscopy that involves the insertion of a tiny camera inside the stomach to find out the inner picture. In the case of any suspiciousness, a small tissue is taken out to inspect. Some other imaging tests include CT scan, barium swallow etc. There could be four stages of cancer depending on the advancement of the spread of the cancer cells in other organs of the body.

Treatment:
The treatment plan is decided depending on the stage of cancer. If a doctor feels that surgery is required to eradicate the infected tissue, he suggests the same along with radiotherapy. If, however, the surgery is not needed, doctors suggest chemotherapy followed by few dosages of radiotherapy. The dosage is decided on the extent of the spread of cancer and other factors such as future threat, the present medical condition of the patient etc. Surgery is the only best hope available in present world depending upon the stage !

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!