Changing trends in the proportions of small (≤ 2 cm) proximal and non-proximal gastric carcinomas treated at a high-volume tertiary medical center in China.

OBJECTIVE: Guided by the recently established histological criteria of the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ), we aimed to investigate and compare trends in the proportions of small (≤ 2 cm) proximal gastric carcinoma (PGC) vs non-PGC (NPGC) in Chinese patients over an 8-year period. METHODS: The study was conducted with consecutive surgical resected specimens of small PGC that was located within 3 cm below the GEJ and NPGC (located at all other gastric regions) treated at a single medical center in China. Differences in proportions between the two groups were compared. RESULTS: Among all 313 cases, 111 (35.5%) were classified as PGC and the remaining 202 (64.5%) as NPGC. Patients with PGC were significantly elder than those with NPGC, and none aged younger than 40 years. The proportions of PGC significantly and progressively increased from 16% in 2004 to 45% in 2011, in contrast to a steady decreasing trend for NPGC from 84% to 55% over the same period. The difference in trends between the two groups approached, but was not at a statistically significant level (P = 0.08). Proportions of small cancers in the gastric corpus and in female patients remained low and stable, in contrast to a significantly higher proportion in male patients (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our data showed a significantly upward-shifting trend in the proportions of small PGC, primarily in elderly male patients, in contrast to a downward shifting trend in NPGC over the most recent 8-year period in Chinese patients.

Duke Scholars

Author Lily Huang Medicine, General Internal Medicine