Clinical and Epidemiological Profile of Early Gastric Cancer in a Referral Hospital in Teresina, Piauí

Abstract

Introduction: Early gastric cancer is defined as adenocarcinoma confined to the mucosa or submucosa regardless of lymph node involvement. When diagnosed at this stage, the survival rate at 5 years exceeds 90%. Objective: To characterize the clinical and epidemiological profile of patients with early gastric cancer treated in an oncology referral hospital of Teresina in the period from 2004 to 2009. Method: A descriptive, retrospective and quantitative study was conducted by reviewing medical records with confirmed cases of early gastric cancer treated at the hospital from 2004 to 2009. Results: 22 patients were studied, corresponding to 3.8% of all cases of gastric cancer, 13 of which (59%) were male, whose mean age was 59.7 years. The most common symptom was epigastric pain (n=10, 38.5%). The predominant site was the gastric antrum (n=12, 54%) and the most affected layer was the submucosa (n=14, 63.6%). The the most prevalent degree of differentiation was G3 (n=14, 68.2%). The most recorded macroscopic types were IIc and III in 7 (31%) cases each. The treatment was surgery with total gastrectomy as the most used echnique (n=13, 59%). Conclusion: Early gastric cancer is rarely diagnosed in the area, and it is a fact observed in Western studies and its profile is to those described in the literature.