Time of onset of carcinoma of the stomach following surgical treatment of duodenal ulcer.

In a review of 1,092 patients with histologically proved carcinoma of the stomach, it was found that 40 patients (3.8 per cent) had previously undergone surgical treatment of a duodenal ulcer. In 13 patients, truncal vagotomy had been carried out, while 27 patients had a partial gastrectomy. Patients having truncal vagotomy and who subsequently had carcinoma of the stomach develop did so at a significantly earlier age than those having partial gastrectomy (55 years compared with 64 years). Carcinoma of the stomach was diagnosed after an average interval of 8.5 years in the vagotomy group compared with 24.0 years in the nonvagotomy group. Possible explanations for this observation are considered. Patients in the vagotomy group were less likely to have a resectable tumor.