Gastric cancer in the young, with special reference to 14 pregnancy‐associated cases: Analysis based on 2,325 consecutive cases of gastric cancer

Abstract

Clinicopathologic features of gastric cancer in young women were analyzed with special reference to pregnancy (P). Among 2,325 consecutive patients, there were 152 young patients under 40 years of age (57 males and 95 females), and 14 P-associated cases were identified. The male-to-female ratio was 1.7:1.0 on the whole, but 1.0:1.7 in the young group with more females predominating as the age of patients decreased. Among characteristics of gastric cancer in the young females, we noted a significantly higher frequency of both Borrmann type 4 cancer and poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma with the scirrhus type of growth and peritoneal metastasis. These characteristics were more pronounced in the P-associated cases. Although we were unable to determine the mechanism for these tendencies, our findings suggest that the development and growth of gastric cancer in young women may be influenced by their natural, biological and hormonal circumstances. The prognosis of the young women with or without associated pregnancy was good after curative surgery. Both early detection of gastric cancer and subsequent potentially curative surgery are the best ways to obtain good survival for young women, as is the case for members of other age and sex groups.

Height, weight, menstrual and reproductive factors and risk of gastric cancer among Japanese postmenopausal women: Analysis by subsite and histologic subtype

“…In clinicopathologic studies, acceleration of gastric cancer growth by pregnancy and delivery has been observed, 7 especially of nondifferentiated type. 32 However, it is possible that these premenopausal gastric cancers were influenced by short-term hormonal conditions caused by the actual event of pregnancy. Regarding the risk among postmenopausal women, long-term effects would be expected to be of greater importance.…”

Gastric cancer in the elderly: An overview

“…The effect of sex hormones on gastric cancer development has been proposed as an explanation of the female predominance in that age group [7]. Several studies have even reported pregnancy as an adverse prognostic factor [8,9]. Recent changes in life style -raise of the percentage of active smokers among females -may also have contributed to the above gender ratio.…”

Sister Mary Joseph’s nodule as the first sign of pregnancy-associated gastric cancer: A case report

“…When symptoms are present, they can be misinterpreted as simply pregnancy-related. Hormonal stimulation and pregnancy in young women may accelerate the growth of gastric cancer [3,21] . Therefore, we tested for estrogen and progesterone receptors in our patient's tumor and the results were negative.…”

“…Moreover, gastric cancer associated with pregnancy is in itself an extremely rare occurrence. The available information on this subject is scarce and consists mainly of case reports and studies on large patient populations, in which some cases of pregnancy-associated malignancies are included [2][3][4][5] . Diagnosis is usually delayed due to non-specific symptoms that are often misinterpreted as pregnancy-associated.…”