Early gastric cancer in southern Taiwan.
Between January 1986 and November 1990, 231 patients underwent resection for primary gastric adenocarcinoma at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in southern Taiwan. Thirty-nine (17%) of these patients had early gastric cancer (limited to the mucosa or submucosa regardless of nodal metastases). Epigastric pain was the most frequent symptom (71.8%). The lesions were located in the lower third of the stomach in 84.6% of the patients and in the middle third in 15.4%. A preoperative diagnosis of gastric cancer was achieved in 94% of patients by endoscopic examination with biopsies. All of the patients underwent distal subtotal gastrectomy without mortality. Macroscopically, 84.6% of cases were included in types IIc, III, and IIc-III. One patient died of multiple liver metastases 3.2 years after operation. The cumulative survival rate at 5 years is 92.9%. We comment on these matters and place early gastric cancer in Taiwan into a more global context.
Sheen-Chen
S M
SM
Department of Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung Medical College, Kaohsiung Hsien, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Chou
F F
FF
Chen
Y S
YS
Chen
M J
MJ
Chen
F C
FC
Chen
J J
JJ
Wan
Y L
YL
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005743:Gastrectomy; D005773:Gastroscopy; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D015996:Survival Rate; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology