What Does Stomach Cancer Do To The Body

What The Research Says

In a 2008 study, researchers taught a dog to differentiate between types and grades of ovarian tumors versus healthy samples. In controlled experiments, the study authors found that their trained dogs were very reliable at sniffing out ovarian cancers.

However, they didnt think dogs could be used in clinical practice. They noted that a variety of influences could interfere with the task and affect accuracy.

A 2010 study using dogs found that cancer does have a specific scent. What causes that smell isnt clear, but it may have something to do with polyamines. Polyamines are molecules linked to cell growth, proliferation, and differentiation. Cancer raises polyamine levels, and they do have a distinct odor.

Researchers in this study also found that cancer-specific chemicals might circulate throughout the body. They hope to use this knowledge to advance early detection of colorectal cancer.

Using an electronic nose, researchers have been able to detect prostate cancer from urine smell print profiles.

These studies, and others like them, are a promising area of cancer research. Its still in its infancy, though. At this time, scent isnt a reliable screening tool for cancer.

What Are The Main Causes Of Stomach Cancer

There is no single cause of stomach cancer and sometimes it happens without any known risk factors. Lifestyle choices can increase the likelihood of stomach cancer. However, those who experience long-term stomach inflammation from either lifestyle choices or chronic illness are at higher risk.

The are often related to a medical history that includes:

• H. pylori bacterial infections: A common stomach infection that often causes ulcers.
• Tumors: Other tumors occurring elsewhere in the gastrointestinal tract.
• Stomach polyps: Abnormal tissue growth in the stomach lining.
• Stomach reflex

There are lifestyle changes you can make that may decrease your risk of stomach cancer. These include:

• Having a healthy diet and avoiding
• Processed foods
• Salted foods or increased sodium

Risk factors for stomach cancer that you cannot change, include:

• Your age
• Being male
• Being of Asian, South American or Belarusian descent
• Having a family history of stomach cancer
• Having a history of stomach surgery
• Having pernicious anemia, which is a vitamin deficiency that may be related to either lifestyle or disease

What Are The Treatment Options For Stage 4 Stomach Cancer

Stage 4 stomach cancer is harder to treat than earlier stage stomach cancer. Thats because its no longer confined to the stomach and may involve several distant organs. Its usually not curable, but its certainly treatable.

The goal of treatment is to ease symptoms and control the cancers growth. Your doctor will recommend therapies based on your age and overall health, including any other health conditions you may have. Your options also depend on specific characteristics of the cancer.

Treatment for cancer usually involves a combination of therapies. Your treatment plan can be adjusted based on how well its working. Tell your doctor if you have new symptoms along the way so they can be factored in.

Some treatments for stage 4 stomach cancer are:

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D Symptoms Secondary To Bile Duct Obstruction

Because the pancreatic tumor mass of ductal adenocarcinoma most commonly arises from the head of the pancreas which are the sections where the bile duct joins with the pancreatic duct, the normal flow of the bile duct is often obstructed, thus disrupting the natural deposition of the bile fluid into the small bowel. This bile duct obstruction causes a back-up of the bile pigment into areas where it shouldnt normally go creating the clinical symptoms of jaundice with its attendant yellowish skin coloration and other associated changes, and which is often accompanied by a loss of appetite and by the symptom of unrelenting and often debilitating pruritis of the skin.

Additionally, the lack of bile salts which are now unavailable for normal digestive and other bowel processes, can result in complex physiological interactions leading to liver and immune dysfunction. This interruption of normal bile deposition may also disrupt the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and the conjugation of endotoxins, thus leading to possible blood coagulation difficulties, malabsorption syndromes and even kidney failure. Also, up to ten percent of affected patients may develop cholangitis .

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Pancreatic Cancer Symptoms: Location Matters

Initially, pancreatic cancer tends to be silent and painless as it grows. By the time its large enough to cause symptoms, pancreatic cancer has generally grown outside the pancreas. Because of the location of the pancreas in the body, symptoms include:

• Jaundice. As pancreatic cancer blocks duct that releases bile into the intestine , the ingredients of bile build up in the blood. This turns the skin and the eyes yellow, a condition called jaundice. The same blockage causes dark urine, light colored stools, and itching.
• Abdominal pain. Pancreatic cancer can cause a dull ache in the upper abdomen radiating to the back. The pain may come and go.
• Back pain.
• Bloating. Some people with pancreatic cancer have a sense of early fullness with meals or an uncomfortable swelling in the abdomen.
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.

In general, symptoms appear earlier from cancers in the head of the pancreas, compared to those in the body and tail. Keep in mind that having any or all of these symptoms doesnât mean a person has pancreatic cancer. There are many other causes for these types of symptoms.

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Living With Advanced Cancer

Advanced cancer usually means cancer that is unlikely to be cured. Some people can live for many months or years with advanced cancer. During this time palliative care services can help.

Most people continue to have treatment for advanced cancer as part of palliative care, as it helps manage the cancer and improve their day-to-day lives. Many people think that palliative care is for people who are dying but palliative care is for any stage of advanced cancer. There are doctors, nurses and other people who specialise in palliative care.

Treatment may include chemotherapy, radiation therapy or another type of treatment. It can help in these ways:

• Slow down how fast the cancer is growing.
• Shrink the cancer.
• Help you to live more comfortably by managing symptoms, like pain.

Treatment depends on:

• How far it has spread.
• Your general health.

What Is Gastric Cancer

Normally, cells in the body will grow and divide to replace old or damaged cells. This growth is highly regulated, and once enough cells are produced to replace the old ones, normal cells will stop dividing. Tumors occur when there is an error in this regulation and cells continue to grow uncontrolled.

Gastric cancer, or stomach cancer, is cancer of the stomach. Gastric cancer occurs when cells in the lining of the stomach grow uncontrollably and form tumors that can invade normal tissues and spread to other parts of the body. Cancers are described by the types of cells from which they arise. About 90-95% of gastric cancers arise from the lining of the stomach, called adenocarcinoma. There are other cancers that can arise in the stomach, including gastrointestinal stromal tumors , lymphoma, and carcinoid tumors, among others.

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Laser Therapy Or Stent

Laser therapy can be used to destroy tumors, stop bleeding, or alleviate a blockage in the stomach.

This can sometimes be accomplished without surgery.

The doctor inserts a long, flexible tube called an endoscope down the throat and into the stomach to deliver the laser beam. This is also called endoscopic tumor ablation.

Hollow tubes called stents can sometimes help. By placing a stent between the stomach and esophagus or between the stomach and small intestine, food will be able to pass through unobstructed.

How Serious Is My Cancer

If you have stomach cancer, the doctor will want to find out how far it has spread to help decide what type of treatment is best for you. This is called the stage of the cancer. The tests above are used to help stage the cancer.

The stage describes the growth or spread of the cancer in the stomach or into nearby areas. It also tells if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body that are farther away.

Your cancer can be stage 1, 2, 3, or 4. The lower the number, the less the cancer has spread. A higher number means the cancer has spread more. Be sure to ask the doctor about the cancer stage and what it means for you.

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Gastric Cancer Is A Disease In Which Malignant Cells Form In The Lining Of The Stomach

The stomach is a J-shaped organ in the upper abdomen. It is part of the digestive system, which processes nutrients in foods that are eaten and helps pass waste material out of the body. Food moves from the throat to the stomach through a hollow, muscular tube called the esophagus. After leaving the stomach, partly-digested food passes into the small intestine and then into the large intestine.

The wall of the stomach is made up of 5 layers of tissue. From the innermost layer to the outermost layer, the layers of the stomach wall are: mucosa, submucosa, muscle, subserosa , and serosa. Gastric cancer begins in the mucosa and spreads through the outer layers as it grows.

Stromal tumors of the stomach begin in supporting connective tissue and are treated differently from gastric cancer. See the PDQ summary on Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors Treatment for more information.

For more information about cancers of the stomach, see the following PDQ summaries:

• Stomach Cancer Screening

The 4 Most Painful Types Of Cancer And What Makes Them Hurt So Much

Even by the broadest definition possible abnormal cell growth there are more than 100 different types of cancer, depending on where in the body that growth first occurs.

Similarly, though cancer often leaves its sufferers racked with pain, these symptoms will vary depending on factors such as the cancers location and exact cause . In light of this, lets take a brief look at four of the most painful cancers around, in no particular order, as well as why they hurt so much.

What are some of the most painful cancers around?Pixabay, Public Domain

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Questions To Ask Your Doctor

• I have a stomach ulcer. Am I more likely to get stomach cancer?
• Will eating a healthy diet help me to prevent getting stomach cancer?
• My father had stomach cancer. Should I be tested for it?
• What is the best treatment for my stomach cancer?
• Will I be able to eat normally after my treatment?
• After my treatment, will I have to come back often to make sure my stomach cancer doesnt come back?
• During and after treatment, should I quit drinking alcohol?

How Is Stomach Cancer Diagnosed

Several different tests can be used to help diagnose stomach cancer.

• Radiologic tests like a CT scan, barium swallow and MRI can help identify a problem in the stomach if the tumor is large enough.
• An upper endoscopy is used to take a biopsy of the lesion to make the diagnosis or to detect early cancer before a mass is large enough to be seen on radiologic tests. An upper endoscopy is performed by inserting a thin tube with a tiny camera through the mouth and into the stomach, where biopsies are obtained from the tumor.
• To find out how much of the stomach wall a tumor involves and to help assess the stage of the cancer, a doctor will order an endoscopic ultrasound, which uses a special type of endoscope that has an ultrasound probe. The endoscope is placed in the stomach through the mouth. The ultrasound probe is able to look through the surface of the stomach lining to the stomach wall beyond and see how much of the stomach is involved by the tumor.

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Stages And Grades Of Stomach Cancer

Stages of cancer

The stage of a cancer means how far it has grown in your body. The most common way doctors decide on a stage for stomach cancer is the TNM staging system. The stages are based on the size of the tumour, whether or not lymph nodes are affected, and whether the cancer has spread:

• Stage 1 describes early or limited cancer where tumours are found only in the stomach.
• Stage 23 describes locally advanced cancer where tumours have spread deeper into the layers of the stomach and to nearby lymph nodes.
• Stage 4 describes metastatic or advanced cancer where tumours have spread beyond the stomach to nearby lymph nodes or parts of the body, or to distant lymph nodes and parts of the body.

Grades of cancer

The grade of the cancer means how quickly a cancer might grow. Knowing the grade helps your doctor work out the best treatment plan for you.

When Is The Right Time To Use Hospice Care

Many people believe that hospice care is only appropriate in the last days or weeks of life. Yet Medicare states that it can be used as much as 6 months before death is anticipated. And those who have lost loved ones say that they wish they had called in hospice care sooner.

Research has shown that patients and families who use hospice services report a higher quality of life than those who dont. Hospice care offers many helpful services, including medical care, counseling, and respite care. People usually qualify for hospice when their doctor signs a statement saying that patients with their type and stage of disease, on average, arent likely to survive beyond 6 months. More information about hospice can be found below in the Related Resources section of this fact sheet.

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Warning Symptoms Of Stomach Cancer You Should Not Ignore

Stomach cancer has a reputation for being one of the most painful forms of cancer. But for many sufferers, pain is not among the early warning signs of stomach cancer. The most characteristic feature in the early stages may be that it causes no symptoms at all. There are types of gastric cancer that vary according to their stage.

We all get stomachaches from time to time, and that can make people worry about stomach cancer. But its not one of the most common cancers, and in most cases, stomachaches or pain are not going to be the result of cancer. Stomach cancer description is easy upon learning these warning signs of stomach cancer. The list of symptoms are well organized you should press the next button below each symptom to move to the next one.

Tests That May Be Done

Here are some of the exams and tests you may need:

Tests to look for bleeding: The doctor might order a blood test to check for a low red blood cell count, which could be caused by the cancer bleeding into the stomach. A test might also be done to look for blood in your stool that can’t be seen by the naked eye, which could also be a sign of bleeding in the stomach.

Upper endoscopy or EGD: This is the test most often done if you might have stomach cancer. For this test, a bendable, thin tube with a tiny light and video camera on the end is put in your mouth and passed down into your throat and stomach. If there are any spots that look like cancer, small pieces of them can be taken out through the tube and checked for cancer cells.

Endoscopic ultrasound : This test can be done during an upper endoscopy. A small probe is placed on the tip of the thin tube that is passed down the throat into the stomach. It uses sound waves and their echoes to make pictures of the layers of the stomach wall. It can also be used to take out small pieces of abnormal areas that can be checked for cancer.

Upper GI series: This test is a series of x-rays taken after you swallow barium, a thick, chalky liquid that shows up on x-rays. This can show problems in the inner lining of the throat, stomach, and part of the small intestine.

CT or CAT scan: This test uses x-rays to make detailed pictures of your insides. This can show the size of the cancer and if it has spread.

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What Will Happen After Treatment

If you’ve completed treatment, youll be glad when it’s over. But it can be hard not to worry about cancer coming back. Even when cancer never comes back, people still worry about it.

For years after treatment ends, it will still be important to see your cancer doctors. Follow-up is needed to watch for treatment side effects and to check for cancer that has come back or spread. Be sure to go to all of your follow-up visits. During these visits, they will ask about symptoms and examine you. If you’re having symptoms, you might need to get lab tests, imaging tests, or an endoscopy.

At first, follow-up visits may be every few months. Over time, the visits might be needed less often. Your cancer care team can tell you more about these visits, when you might need to contact them if problems come up, and what else to expect after treatment.

Initial Assessment And Gastroscopy

If a doctor suspects that you may have stomach cancer, he or she may examine you. The examination is often normal, especially if the cancer is at an early stage. Therefore, a gastroscopy is usually arranged. A gastroscope is a thin, flexible, telescope. It is passed through the mouth, into the gullet and down towards the stomach and the first part of the small intestine . The endoscope contains fibre-optic channels which allow light to shine down so the doctor or nurse can see inside your stomach and duodenum. for more details.)

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