title: Characteristics of synchronous cancers in gastric cancer patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The primary objective of the current study was to investigate the characteristics of synchronous cancers in gastric cancer patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed the 2,237 patients who were diagnosed between December 2000 and December 2003 with gastric cancer and synchronous cancers of organs other than the stomach.
  
  
  RESULTS
  73 (3.3%) of a total of 2,237 gastric cancer patients had synchronous primary cancers. Among these 73 patients, 71 had one synchronous cancer, and two patients had double synchronous cancers. Colorectal cancer (26 patients, 34.7%) was the most frequently encountered synchronous cancer, followed by cancer of the lung (16 patients, 21.3%), esophagus (13 patients, 17.2%), and liver (8 patients, 10.7%). Synchronous cancers were detected with increased frequency in the elderly, in the patients with multiple gastric cancers, in the patients with differentiated gastric cancer, and in the patients with early gastric cancer, as determined on univariate analysis, but the differentiation of gastric cancers was the only risk factor for synchronous cancers on the multivariate analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The differentiation of gastric cancer cells may be a risk factor for synchronous cancers in gastric cancer patients. Careful surveillance by the physician for synchronous cancer is warranted for the patients suffering from gastric cancer.
authors.affiliation: Center for Gastric Cancer, Research Institute and Hospital, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Ja Seong
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Jun Ho
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Keun Won
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Ryu
authors.forename: Young Woo
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jae Moon
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bae