Cancer of the stomach—also called gastric cancer or gastric carcinoma—is a treatable disease that can often be cured when it is found and treated at a local stage. Unfortunately, the general outlook for this type of cancer is poor because 80 percent of the cases diagnosed in the United States are already at an advanced stage, having spread to nearby or distant organs. In 1994, 24,000 Americans will be diagnosed with gastric cancer, and 14,000 of them will die because of the disease.
A more encouraging fact about this cancer, however, is that the death rate has dramatically decreased, falling approximately 60 percent between 1930 and 1970.
Stomach cancer was the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States between 1900 and 1945, but is now the eighth most common cause of cancer deaths. The exact reason for the decline— which is greatest among the elderly and whites—is not understood, although dietary changes have been considered.
Types Stomach cancers are classified according to what sort of tissues they start in. The most common type arises in the glandular tissue lining the stomach. These tumors are called adenocarcinomas and account for over 95 percent of all stomach tumors. One particular form of this cell type, unusual in the United States but more
