Early carcinoma of the stomach.

We analyzed data on 423 Japanese patients with early carcinoma of the stomach with respect to clinicopathologic features and prognosis. All patients were treated in the clinics at which we work. The upper one-third of the stomach was less frequently involved. Therefore, partial gastrectomy was performed more often in patients with early carcinoma of the stomach than in those with advanced carcinoma of the stomach. The differentiated type of carcinoma of the stomach was more frequent and grew expansively. Lymph node metastasis was noted in 11.6 percent of the patients, lymphatic vessel involvement was evident in 13.5 percent and extensive lymph node dissection (R2 or R3) was performed in 86.0 percent. The 15 year survival rate for patients with early carcinoma of the stomach was 89.0 percent. Lymph node metastasis, differentiated tumor type and patient age proved to be independent prognostic factors, as determined by multivariate analysis. Increased detection of early carcinoma of the stomach in its curable stages may be achieved through gastrointestinal series and endoscopy for symptomatic patients. A close follow-up evaluation is essential to detect recurrences, even when a curative resection is performed.