Author: Zhu Zhi (First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University)
Early gastric cancer is defined as a tumor confined to the mucous membrane and/or submucosal layer of the gastric wall (i.e., confined to the innermost two layers of the gastric wall), with or without lymph node metastasis.
It can be simply understood that early gastric cancer grows in the stomach wall is still relatively superficial, and the treatment outcome is generally good at this time.
Most early-stage gastric cancers are endoscopicly cured [1].
However, approximately 80 percent of patients with early-stage gastric cancer do not have clinical symptoms [2].
The Chinese Anti-Cancer Society recommends that people can identify early warning signs of stomach cancer from their own feelings and symptom changes.
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Stomach cancer may signal the following at an early stage.
1. Loss of appetite, fatigue and obvious weight loss for unknown reasons;
2. Patients with previous stomach diseases (such as gastritis and gastric ulcers), abdominal pain loses the regularity of the onset of the original ulcer disease, and there is no relief after eating or taking medicine, but it is aggravated;
3. Persistent black stool, pale face, weak body;
4. More than 5 years after the previous gastric surgery, abdominal discomfort, indigestion, irregular or irregular bowel movements.
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The above symptoms are some "signals" of early gastric cancer, but are often mistaken by patients for aggravation of stomach disease.
For people with a family history of stomach cancer or other gastrointestinal tumors, the above symptoms without stomach disease, or the original symptoms of stomach disease changes or worsen, should be vigilant, should be early to the hospital for medical treatment, for specialist examination.
Early-stage gastric cancer has a 5-year survival rate of more than 95% after resection [3].
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bibliography:
[1] Saragoni, L., et al. Early Gastric Cancer: Clinical Behavior and Treatment Options. Results of an Italian Multicenter Study on Behalf of the Italian Gastric Cancer Research Group (GIRCG)[J]. Oncologist, 2018.
Chen Qingfa. Application of ultrafine gastroscopy and pre-examination communication in gastroscopy review in patients with early gastric cancer[J].Chinese Journal of Modern Medicine, 2017.
[3] Kim, S.G., et al. Long-Term Clinical Outcomes of Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection in Patients with Early Gastric Cancer: A Prospective Multicenter Cohort Study[J]. Gut Liver, 2018.
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