Abstract
Treatment and clinical control of recurrence of gastric cancer is one of the most important problems for clinicians.
One thousand and thirty five cases of gastric cancer have been admitted to our clinic to be operated for the past 11 years. One hundred and eighteen of them were recurred cases, and these account 11.4% of all gastric cancer. All recurrent cases suffered from symptoms of chronic intestinal stenosis such as vomiting, abdominal inflation and pain jaundice, and palpable tumor. Fifty nine cases of them could be operated.
Seventeen of 59 cases passed a half to one year, 18 cases one to two years and 12 cases over 2 years from the first to the second operation.
Method of operation was varied with symptoms, i. e. 22 cases of intestinal anastomosis, 12 cases of laying of the gall fistula, 8 cases of exstirpation of tumor, 6 cases of esophagojejunostomy, 15 cases of probe laparotomy and others. Total exstirpation of the rest of stomach was performed for only one case.
In all cases severe cancerous adhesion, dissemination of cancer nodes or metastasis of lymph nodes were found at laparotomy, therefore radical operations could not be performed.
Severe complication developed after operation in many cases, namely, suture leak was 13.5% of operated cases, acute heart insufficiency and postoperative pneumonia was 8.5% each.
Fifteen cases of them died within one month after operation. The chief causes of these death were suture leak and general prostration due to cancer.
Eighteen cases were successfully operated and 6 cases of them were alive over 6 months.
Cases of recurrent gastric caner visited hospital usually within one month after appearance of complaints, nevertheless, cancer advanced so severely that radical operation could not be performed, although there were not few cases which were improved by palliative operation and 6 of our cases could be expected to prolong duration of survival.
