Stomach cancer

Cancer is caused when cells in the body grow abnormally. Any part of the human body can be affected by cancer and the particular affected part deteriorates further, resulting in cancer in the future.

The stomach helps to receive, hold and break down the food you eat. Stomach cancer is caused due to excessive unwanted growth of cells in the stomach. Stomach cancer slowly starts at the internal lining of the stomach and penetrates deeper inside the stomach, causing cancer to the stomach.  

This relentless penetration of cancer cells forms stomach tumours which may damage the side organs like the pancreas and liver. As of now, a large number of people are afflicted by stomach cancer all over the world.  

In this blog, we tried to enunciate the causes, signs and prevention of stomach cancer, which will be helpful for people who want to discover more about stomach cancer.

What are the general causes of stomach cancer?

Still, the cause of stomach cancer remains oblivious as scientists and researchers could not come to an exact conclusion about the occurrence of stomach cancer.  

The main cause of stomach cancer is due to genetic mutation or genetic transition in the growth of the cells. This genetic transition helps the internal stomach cells to grow rapidly  

without any orientation. This improper growth of stomach cells eventually forms cancer after some time.  

There are various known and unknown reasons for the occurrence of stomach cancer in the human body. They are

• Family genetics
• Over smoking
• Obesity
• An abnormal change in DNA
• Infection with Helicobacter pylori
• Sudden inflammation in the stomach
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease
• Stomach polyps
• A high salt content diet
• A diet without any fruits and vegetables

What are the common symptoms of stomach cancer?

The following are some of the early symptoms of stomach cancer  

• Blood vomiting
• Difficulty in swallowing food
• Stomach burn
• Complete loss of appetite
• Loss of weight
• Fatigue
• Heartburn
• Nausea
• Intermittent vomiting

How to diagnose stomach cancer?

We can diagnose stomach cancer in the following ways.

• Screening test – You can figure out stomach tumours by taking CT scans and MRI scans.
• Blood test – A blood test can be done to figure out unclean blood in the stomach.
• Upper endoscopy – A tiny camera is sent via a thin tube through the throat to see the presence of a tumour in the stomach.
• Biopsy – A minuscule portion of stomach tissues is removed to test the existence of cancer in the stomach.
• Exploratory surgery – Your doctor can recommend performing exploratory surgery to identify the presence of cancer cells in the stomach region.

How can stomach cancer be prevented?

We can prevent stomach cancer by sincerely following the steps below,

• Eating healthy foods, fruits and vegetables are more than enough to prevent stomach cancer.
• People above the age of 35 should strictly adhere to a healthy diet regularly.
• Add very little amount of salts to food and meat.
• Maintain a good weight for your age and practice exercises regularly.
• Aspirin – using aspirin and ibuprofen with the doctor’s suggestion may lower the chances of stomach cancer in the body.
• Try to avoid smoking, so it reduces stomach cancer as well as lung cancer.

Treatment for stomach cancer

There are multiple ways available for the treatment of stomach cancer. We can cure stomach cancers with advanced treatments without the need for stomach surgeries.  

• In the initial stages, when the cancer is formed at the innermost layers of the stomach, it can be easily removed by performing upper endoscopy. By applying this procedure, the tumour is removed through the mouth from the layer of the gastric wall.
• Extensive therapies include endoscopic resection, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy and so on.
• Radiation therapy deploys high-energy beams to eradicate cancer cells. Chemotherapy uses chemical drugs to remove and kill cancer cells.  
• Invasive surgery treatments like minimally invasive surgery, esophagectomy, subtotal gastrectomy and total gastrectomy are recommended.
• Undergoing Proton beam therapy eradicates the affected, damaged cells present in the stomach, causing cancer.
• Stomach cancer can also be cured with the help of several drugs. Treatment depends on the doctor’s prescription and the intensity of stomach cancer.

Summing up

Treatment for stomach cancer depends on the severity and intensity of damaged tissues in the stomach. People in the early stages of stomach cancer can be easily cured via drugs and chemotherapy. If the disease cannot be cured in the initial stage, surgery and other exclusive treatments can be done to avoid complications.