The choice of treatment depends mainly on the size and location of the tumor,
the stage of disease, and your general health.
Treatment for stomach cancer may involve surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation
therapy. You'll probably receive more than one type of treatment. For example,
chemotherapy may be given before or after surgery. It's often given at the same
time as radiation therapy.
You may want to talk with your doctor about taking part in a clinical trial,
a research study of new treatment methods. Clinical trials are an important
option for people at any stage of stomach cancer.
You may have a team of specialists to help plan your treatment. Your doctor
may refer you to a specialist, or you may ask for a referral. Specialists who
treat stomach cancer include gastroenterologists, surgeons, medical oncologists,
and radiation oncologists. Your health care team may also include an oncology
nurse and a registered dietitian.
Your health care team can describe your treatment choices, the expected
results, and the possible side effects. Because cancer therapy often damages
healthy cells and tissues, side effects are common. Before treatment starts, ask
your health care team about possible side effects, how to prevent or reduce
these effects, and how treatment may change your normal activities. You and your
health care team can work together to make a treatment plan that meets your
needs.
You may want to ask your doctor these questions before you begin treatment:
What is the stage of the disease? Has the cancer spread? Do any lymph nodes
show signs of cancer?
What is the goal of treatment? What are my treatment
choices? Which do you suggest for me? Why?
What are the expected benefits of
each kind of treatment?
What can I do to prepare for treatment?
Will I need to
stay in the hospital? If so, for how long?
What are the risks and possible side
effects of each treatment? How can side effects be managed?
What is the
treatment likely to cost? Will my insurance cover it?
How will treatment affect
my normal activities? Am I likely to have eating or other problems?
Would a
research study (clinical trial) be a good choice for me?
Can you recommend other
doctors who could give me a second opinion about my treatment options?
Abdominal pain is pain in the belly and can be acute or chronic. Causes include inflammation, distention of an organ, and loss of the blood supply to an organ. Abdominal pain can reflect a major problem with one of the organs in the abdomen such as the appendix, gallbladder, large and small intestine, pancreas, liver, colon, duodenum, and spleen.
Anemia is the condition of having less than the normal number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. The oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood is, therefore, decreased.
Lymph nodes help the body's immune system fight infections. Causes of swollen lymph nodes (glands) may include infection (viral, bacterial, fungal, parasites). Symptoms of swollen lymph nodes vary greatly. They can sometimes be tender, painful or disfiguring. The treatment of swollen lymph nodes depends upon the cause.
Nausea is an uneasiness of the stomach that often precedes vomiting. Nausea and vomiting are not diseases, but they are symptoms of many conditions. The causes of vomiting differ according to age, and treatment depends upon the cause of nausea and vomiting.
Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a bacterium that causes chronic inflammation (gastritis) of the inner lining of the stomach in humans. This bacteria also is the most common cause of ulcers worldwide.
A peptic ulcer is an ulcer in the lining of the stomach, duodenum, or esophagus. Ulcer formation is related to Helicobacter pylori bacteria in the stomach, use of anti-inflammatory medications, and cigarette smoking.
Ascites, the accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity is most commonly caused by cirrhosis of the liver. Some of the other causes of ascites include portal hypertension, congestive heart failure, blood clots, and pancreatitis. The most common symptoms include increased abdominal girth and size, abdominal bloating, and abdominal pain. Treatment depends on the cause of ascites.
Cancer is a disease caused by an abnormal growth of cells, also called malignancy. It is a group of 100 different diseases, and is not contagious. Cancer can be treated through chemotherapy, a treatment of drugs that destroy cancer cells.
Pernicious anemia is a blood disorder in which the body does not make enough red blood cells due to a lack of vitamin B12 in the blood. Pernicious anemia can develop from a lack of a protein that helps the body absorb vitamin B12, not getting enough B12 in the diet, and certain intestinal conditions that interfere with the absorption of vitamin B12 such as Crohn's disease, celiac sprue, or ulcerative colitis. There is no cure for pernicious anemia, thus treatment is life-long.
Gastritis is an inflammation of the stomach lining. Causes of gastritis include drinking too much alcohol, medications such as NSAIDs, ibuprofen, aspirin, H. pylori infection, severe infections, burns, anemia, and autoimmune disorders. Gastritis is diagnosed with endoscopy, blood tests, or stool tests. Treatment depends upon the cause of gastritis.
Smoking is an addiction. More than 430,000 deaths occur each year in the U.S. from smoking related illnesses. Secondhand smoke or "passive smoke" also harm family members, coworkers, and others around smokers. There are a number of techniques available to assist people who want to quit smoking.
Though it's difficult to say why some people develop cancer while others don't, research shows that certain risk factors increase a person's odds of developing cancer. These risk factors include growing older, family history of cancer, diet, alcohol and tobacco use, and exposure to sunlight, ionizing radiation, certain chemicals, and some viruses and bacteria.
Digestion is the complex process of turning food you eat into the energy you need to survive. The digestive process also involves creating waste to be eliminated, and is made of a series of muscles that coordinate the movement of food.
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