Treatment of local gastric cancer

Local gastric cancer is a cancer limited to the stomach that has not metastasized in an observable manner. We aim to treat localized gastric cancer curatively. Treatment options for gastric cancer include surgery, pharmaceutical treatment, and radiation therapy, or a combination of these.

Pre-operative chemotherapy before stomach surgery

You will typically receive chemotherapy already before the surgery. With chemotherapy, our aim is to reduce the tumor mass and thus influence the surgical outcome.

What happens during stomach surgery?

In surgery, we aim to remove the cancer tissue completely. Sometimes this can be achieved with partial resection of the stomach, but usually we need to remove the stomach completely. At the same time, we also remove the lymph nodes located near the stomach, and sometimes we also remove the spleen.  

If the cancerous tumor is located at the junction of the esophagus and stomach, i.e. in the esophagogastric junction or cardia, we will also have to remove the lowest part of the esophagus during surgery. After removal, we connect the esophagus to the small intestine to make it possible to eat.  

Eating after stomach removal surgery

After partial gastric resection, you will be able to eat almost normally in the future. If we remove your stomach completely, you need to make changes to your diet and eating rhythm, especially in the early stage. The recommended diet consists of frequent small portions of high-protein and high-fat foods.

Postoperative chemotherapy and radiation therapy

If your condition allows, we will provide you with chemotherapy as complementary treatment after surgery. We will continue drug treatments for a few months after surgery. With the treatments, we can reduce the risk of gastric cancer recurrence.

Radiation therapy alone is not an effective form of treatment for gastric cancer, but when combined with chemotherapy, as so-called chemoradiotherapy, it can be used as postoperative treatment for a high-risk disease, especially when the cancer tissue has not been completely removed.