Gastric cancer is a surprisingly common cancer, especially prevalent among older adults. Fortunately, you can learn everything you need to know about gastric cancer with a search online right now, which could help you spot early symptoms. Are you at risk for stomach cancer? Certain factors can make you more likely to develop it. The key to treating gastric cancer is catching it in its earliest stages. For that reason, knowing the early signs can help you seek treatment.
Factors That Put You at Risk for Gastric Cancer
Certain risk factors can increase your chances of developing gastric cancer. Every specific type of cancer has different risk factors, but the good news is that many can be stopped, changed, or even eliminated.
Understanding the risk factors of gastric, or stomach, cancer can help you determine if you’re at a higher risk for developing the disease.
You’ll want to speak with your doctor to find out if you have any of the following risk factors for gastric cancer:
- Gender – Men more commonly develop stomach cancer.
- Age – Stomach cancer rates increase dramatically after age 50, and again after age 60.
- Ethnicity – Stomach cancer is found more commonly in Hispanic Americans, African Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders.
- Diet – Your risk for gastric cancer increases if you eat many smoked foods, salted fish and meats, and pickled vegetables.
- Tobacco Use – Smoking or using other tobacco products increases the risk of stomach cancer.
- Helicobacter Pylori (H. Pylori) Infection – Being infected with H. pylori is a major cause of gastric cancer.
- Stomach Lymphoma – Those with a specific type of stomach lymphoma can have an increased risk.
- Being Overweight or Obese – Your weight and overall health can be linked to stomach cancer.
There are other risk factors for gastric cancer, but these are some that can affect many people. Other factors, such as inherited cancer syndromes or genetic and hereditary disorders, can also increase your risk.
Early Signs and Symptoms of Gastric Cancer
When cancer first forms, it’s very difficult to notice or detect, but missing the signs of gastric cancer could delay a diagnosis, which can cause complications and difficulties later on.
In its earliest stages, gastric cancer often doesn’t cause any symptoms at all. This makes it incredibly difficult to detect, and you can’t share any changes with your doctor if there aren’t any noticeable changes in your health.
However, it’s still important to know what small or subtle signs could be stomach cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, the following are often early symptoms of gastric cancer:
- Loss of appetite.
- Unexplained or unexpected weight loss.
- Stomach/belly pain or discomfort.
- Feeling full after small meals.
- Heartburn.
- Indigestion.
- Nausea and vomiting (or vomiting with blood).
- Swelling in the stomach.
- Blood in stool.
- Anemia.
If you notice any of these changes, it’s important to let your doctor know. Many can be signs of gastric cancer or another, less concerning condition. But, because stomach cancer is so difficult to detect, it’s always a good idea to alert your doctor for testing.
The Stages of Gastric Cancer
Gastric cancer is a challenging type of cancer to detect. In its earliest stages, it’s nearly impossible to notice the cancer’s appearance or growth.
In fact, only one in five stomach cancer diagnoses are made when the cancer is still in its early stages. More commonly, gastric cancer is discovered once it’s already spread to other areas of the body.
Doctors determine the stages of gastric cancer in order to determine how significant the cancer is, where it’s located, and what treatment options are possible. The following are the stages of gastric cancer:
- Stage I: The cancer tumor is only found in the top layer of the tissue of the esophagus or stomach.
- Stage II: The cancer has spread into deeper layers of tissue and muscle, such as the wall of the stomach. It may also be present in lymph nodes.
- Stage III: The cancer has grown into all layers of the esophagus or stomach. It’s begun spreading to nearby areas, and it’s extensively present in lymph nodes.
- Stage IV: The cancer has spread to other areas of the body.
Treating Gastric Cancer
If you’re diagnosed with gastric cancer, your doctor will perform in-depth testing to determine what stage your cancer is at. From there, your stage will determine which treatment you pursue.
Doctors can recommend many different treatment options for gastric, or stomach, cancer. Your overall health, as well as your prognosis, will help determine which treatment or combination of treatments is best.
The following are some of the common treatment options for gastric cancer:
- Surgery: Gastric cancer tumors may be able to be removed via surgery. It’s also an option to remove part of the affected organs and lymph nodes and leave only healthy tissue behind.
- Radiation Therapy: Radiation therapy uses beams of energy to kill cancerous cells. It’s often used in combination with other treatments to eliminate cancerous cells.
- Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is a drug that’s given to patients to kill cancer cells. It can kill cells in the stomach and the entire body, and it can shrink tumors. It can also be used with other treatments.
- Targeted Drug Therapy: Different drugs and medications can be used to attack specific cancer cells, specific abnormalities caused by cancer, and to help the immune system better fight off cancer cells. Targeted drug therapy is often used with chemotherapy.
In addition to these currently available and tested treatment options, there is more research being conducted every year. As the Mayo Clinic notes, potential future treatments including new medications and therapies, such as immunotherapy, may be able to better kill cancer.
It’s important to stay knowledgeable about these potential treatments, as well as the latest updates on gastric cancer. This cancer, although difficult to detect in its early stages, may have a promising prognosis in the future as breakthroughs occur and research continues.
In the meantime, it’s important to take note of any changes in your body. If you have risk factors for gastric cancer, you want to be aware of its signs and symptoms to get screened and catch it as soon as possible.