title: Clinical profile of gastric cancer in Khuzestan, southwest of Iran.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To analyze the characteristics of epidemiological, clinical and survival patterns among patients with carcinoma of the stomach.
  
  
  METHODS
  We retrospectively studied the characteristics of 186 gastric adenocarcinoma patients at Ahwaz Jundishapur University Hospitals (AJSUH) from September 1, 1996 to September 1, 2002. All the patients had histopathologically-confirmed malignancy. Demographic variables, family history of gastric cancer (GC), clinicopathologic characteristics and treatment-related variables were analyzed. Univariate analysis was performed with the log-rank test and multivariate analysis with Cox regression. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Male to female ratio was 2.6:1. The mean age was 60.6 years and 14% of the patients were younger than 40 years. Adenocarcinoma, gastric lymphoma, and gastric metastasis were found in 94.5%, 2.3%, and 3% patients, respectively. There was an average of 6-mo delay between the initial symptoms and the diagnosis. Among adenocarcinoma groups, intestinal type was the commonest (55.9%) and the distal third was the most common localization (88.4%). One hundred and thirty-four patients (72.1%) were males. Thirty-one patients (17%) had a family history of GC. Surgery was performed in 90% of patients (non-curative).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The epidemiological features of GC in south Iran mimic those in high-risk areas. There is a higher frequency of GC in young patients at our institution. Patients are detected and treated after a relatively long delay. Most patients present in advanced stages, which favors a poor overall survival. Family history of GC has a significant problem in our area. Studying the etiology of this cancer in south Iran and earlier diagnosis and subsequent better cares are recommended.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Ahwaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Golestan Hospital, PO Box 89, Ahwaz, Iran. ehajiani@ajums.ac.ir
authors.forename: Hajiani
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Eskandar
authors.forename: Sarmast Shoshtari Mohammad
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Hossein
authors.forename: Masjedizadeh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rahim
authors.forename: Hashemi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jalal
authors.forename: Azmi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mehrdad
authors.forename: Tahereh
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rajabi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D015996:Survival Rate