Treatment

The most common treatment for stomach cancer are radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery.

Neo-adjuvant therapy is a treatment given as a first step to shrink a tumor before the main treatment is given. It includes chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and hormone therapy and is a type of induction therapy. 

Cr : Alternative-cancer.net

Radiotherapy:

This treatment can be used to relieve the stomach blockage in stomach cancer patient and is also useful in stopping the bleeding in stomach. There will be some side effects caused by radiotherapy such as gastrointestinal toxicity from dose-limiting structures surrounding the stomach (intestines, liver, kidneys, spinal cord, and heart).

Chemotherapy:

It is used to reduced symptoms from an advanced cancer as well as to prolong the time of spreading of cancer cells throughout the body. It is usually as a follow-up investigation for patients who undergo surgery. Chemotherapy will also cause adverse effects like nausea, hair loss and decrease in the white blood cells count.

Cr : Higa F.

Surgery:

It is performed to reduce complications of the cancer such as blockage of the stomach or bleeding from the cancer. Gastric cancer is classified according to its location in the proximal, middle, or distal stomach which is useful for determining the extent of resection. The surgical procedure in patients with stomach cancer including primarily adjust to the location of the tumor, the growth pattern seen on biopsy specimens, and the expected location of lymph node metastases.

An example of surgery is laparoscopic surgery. It is commonly used to remove small stomach cancers and is the examination of the inside of the body using a tube-shaped instrument that can be inserted through the wall of abdomen. Advantage of this type of surgery is that it does not require a large incision in the abdomen, so recovery time will be shorter.

Another treatment which involves surgery is gastrectomy. First of all, the affected part of the stomach is removed and then the small intestine is joined to the stomach so that the digestive tract can function normally. Once the digestive tract has recovered, they can resume their normal diet.

                    

Targeted therapy:

Chemotherapy drugs are involved in this kind of therapy. The drugs target against the cancer cells that divide rapidly and uncontrollably so that the treatment is effective. Some examples of drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for stomach cancer are:

-          Adriamycin PFS (Doxorubicin Hydrochloride)

-          Adriamycin RDF (Doxorubicin Hydrochloride)

-          Doxorubicin Hydrochloride

-          Efudex (Fluorouracil)

-          Fluoroplex (Fluorouracil)

Cr : Indel J.

Immunotherapy:

This treatment also uses drugs to treat cancer by stimulating the body’s immune system fight against the cancer. Combining chemotherapy with immunotherapy slows down the recurrence of stomach cancer cells  helps to extend lifetime.

A new option for stomach cancer treatment was introduced in year 2006 according to a British study in the New England Journal of Medicine. They had discovered that patients may survive longer if they receive chemotherapy before and after the surgery to remove tumor.

Intraoperative electron-beam therapy:

An alternative method of delivering high-dose radiation to the tumor bed is intraoperative electron beam therapy (IORT), a technique that permits delivery of a high dose to the tumor bed while minimizing the exposure to the surrounding normal tissue. IORT doses range from 10-20 Gray and the toxicity is acceptable. It has been shown to produce long-term survival in one or two-tenth of the studies.