Trend in gastric cancer:35 years of surgical experience in Japan

AIM:To investigate the trend in gastric cancer surgery in the context of rapid therapeutic advancement in Japan and East Asia.METHODS:A retrospective analysis was performed on 4163 patients who underwent gastric resection for gastric cancer with histological confirmation between 1971 and 2007 at the surgical unit in Kitasato University Hospital,to determine the trend in gastric cancer requiring surgery.RESULTS:Gastric cancer requiring surgical resection increased in our hospital,but the incidence adjusted for population was constant during the observed pe-riod.Interestingly,the ratio of diffuse type/intestinal type gastric cancer was unexpectedly unchanged,and that of advanced/early gastric cancer(EGC)was,however,markedly reduced,while the actual incidence of potentially curative advanced gastric cancer tended to decrease.The incidence of EGC requiring surgery tended to increase as a whole,which is consistent with increased prevalence of endoscopic surveillance.As a result,overall survival and mortality of gastric cancer requiring gastric resection has recently markedly improved.CONCLUSION:In Japan,planned interventions may improve surgical gastric cancer mortality,but an unexpected trend of persistent existence of intestinal type cancer suggests the need for more robust medical intervention.

Delayed perforation after endoscopic submucosal dissection for early gastric cancer: Clinical features and treatment

Perforation is an important procedural complication of endoscopic submucosal dissection(ESD) for early gastric cancer. Although the incidence of delayed perforation after ESD is low, extreme caution is necessary because many cases require surgical intervention. Among 1984 lesions of early gastric cancer treated in our hospital by ESD in 1588 patients from September 2002 through March 2015, delayed perforation developed in 4 patients(4 lesions, 0.25%). A diagnosis of delayed perforation requires prompt action, including surgical intervention when required.

Macroscopic appearance of TypeⅣand giant Type Ⅲ is a high risk for a poor prognosis in pathological stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ advanced gastric cancer with postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy

AIM To evaluate whether a high risk macroscopic appearance(Type Ⅳ and giant Type Ⅲ) is associated with a dismal prognosis after curative surgery, because its prognostic relevance remains elusive in pathological stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ(p Stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ) gastric cancer.METHODS One hundred and seventy-two advanced gastric cancer(defined as pT2 or beyond) patients with p Stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ who underwent curative surgery plus adjuvant S1 chemotherapy were evaluated, and the prognostic relevance of a high-risk macroscopic appearance was examined. RESULTS Advanced gastric cancers with a high-risk macroscopic appearance were retrospectively identified by preoperative recorded images. A high-risk macroscopic appearance showed a significantly worse relapse free survival(RFS)(35.7%) and overall survival(OS)(34%) than an average risk appearance(P = 0.0003 and P < 0.0001, respectively). A high-risk macroscopic appearance was significantly associated with the 13^(th) Japanese Gastric Cancer Association(JGCA) pT(P = 0.01), but not with the 13^(th) JGCA pN. On univariate analysis for RFS and OS, prognostic factors included 13^(th) JGCA p Stage(P < 0.0001)and other clinicopathological factors including macroscopic appearance. A multivariate Cox proportional hazards model for univariate prognostic factors identified highrisk macroscopic appearance(P = 0.036, HR = 2.29 for RFS and P = 0.021, HR = 2.74 for OS) as an independent prognostic indicator. CONCLUSION A high-risk macroscopic appearance was associated with a poor prognosis, and it could be a prognostic factor independent of 13^(th) JGCA stage in p Stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ advanced gastric cancer.