Abstract
We examined the depth of the cancerous invasion in 15 cases of gastric cancer patients by means of the 3rd. type of Ultrasonic Endoscopy (U. S. E.) made by cooperation of Olympus Co. and Aloka Co. In addition to the scanning of the gastric wall by U. S. E. inserted into the stomach filled with water, resected stomachs were scanned in the water bath by the same instrument. Comparing the echogram of the gastric wall with the histological findings of the resected stomach specimen, we could obtain the following results. (1) Gastric wall was analyzed into 5 layers echographically. The echogenicity of the proper muscle layer was lower than those of the submucosl layer. (2) Proper muscle layer was destructed or discontinued in the majority of our advanced cancer cases. It was difficult, however, to visualize the destruction of the p. m. layer in some advanced cases in which cancer invaded not expansively but diffusely. Hence, the ability of U. S. E. to prove destruction of the proper muscle (p. m.) layer may be influenced by the mode of infiltration throughout the p. m. layer. (3) Characteristic echogram of Borrmann IV type of gastric cancer reveals homogenous thickening of gastric wall in comparison with the normal gastric wall.
