What Are the Symptoms of Stomach Cancer?
Symptoms of stomach cancer manifest as stomach pain, nausea, the inability to eat usual amounts of food, persistent vomiting, severe and continual heartburn, uncontrollable weight loss and extreme indigestion, notes Mayo Clinic. If any of these symptoms occur without relief for a prolonged period of time, medical intervention is necessary.
People who eat a lot of foods that are pickled, salted or smoked seem to be at a higher risk for contracting stomach cancer. According to Mayo Clinic, the disease was more common before the use of refrigerators became widespread. There are several types of stomach cancer that correspond to various classifications of cellular abnormalities, and each category determines a specific treatment. For example, stomach cancer that originates in the stomach’s lining is called adenocarcinoma and is by far the most common form of stomach cancer.
Rarer forms of the disease include gastrointestinal stromal tumors, stomach lymphoma and carcinoid cancer. People seeking treatment for stomach cancer are advised by a doctor to endure some form of chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery, depending on the nature of the disease. It is not uncommon to combine these treatments, notes Mayo Clinic. Specialized drugs are available that target some types of stomach cancer, but not everyone qualifies for these treatments. People may also choose to enroll as test patients for pharmaceutical drug trials, but there is never a promise that these options can cure stomach cancer.
