Stomach Cancer, Causes, Signs and Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment.

Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a cancer which develops from the lining of the stomach. Early symptoms may include heartburn, upper abdominal pain, nausea and loss of appetite.Later signs and symptoms may include weight loss, yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes, vomiting, difficulty swallowing and blood in the stool among others. The cancer may spread from the stomach to other parts of the body, particularly the liver, lungs, bones, lining of the abdomen and lymph nodes.

The most common cause is infection by the bacterium Helicobacter pylori, which accounts for more than 60% of cases. Certain types of H. pylori have greater risks than others. Smoking, dietary factors such as pickled vegetables and obesity are other risk factors. About 10% of cases run in families, and between 1% and 3% of cases are due to genetic syndromes inherited from a person's parents such as hereditary diffuse gastric cancer. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas.