Abstract
A 76-year-old man was diagnosed as having antral gastric cancer (type OI). His cancer was treated by argon plasma coagulation (APC). The patient died of an arrythmia 3 days after APC, and autopy was carried out. Histological examination showed that the mucosa and muscularis mucosae were obliterated by APC. The thermal effect also spread in the superficial layer of the submucosa. No thermal effect of APC reached as far as the muscle layer. Slight degenera-tion, fibrosis, edema, and infiltration of inflammatory cells were observed in the submucosa. There were moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma cells scattered in the submucosal layer as well. Though several experimental studies of the thermal effect of APC have been reported, human data remain scarce. In this case, the histological effect of APC could be evaluated in a human. This case may provide useful information for determining the technique and indications for APC in cancer patients.
