Abstract
A 65-year-old man complaining of nausea underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in June 2012 which showed chronic gastritis. Upon reexamination in October 2013, a gastric cancer of IIa＋IIc on the greater curvature of the gastric antrum was detected. Preoperative endoscopy of 15 days later showed a steep rise of the lesion. Histopathologic findings of the resected specimen showed a well-differentiated adenocarcinomatous gastric cancer that invaded the submucosal layer without vascular invasion and lymph node metasis. Because this well-differentiated adenocarcinoma grew and changed in the short-term, we suspected this case was a special type of gastric cancer. Immunohistochemical analysis of AFP was positive in the gastric cancer resulting in the diagnosis of an AFP-producing gastric cancer. AFP-producing gastric cancer has an extremely poor prognosis, and readily metastasizes to the liver. This case has not recognized metastasis and increase of the serum AFP after operation.
We report our experience with a rare case of AFP-producing early gastric cancer that grew in the short-term.
