Gastrointestinal cancers are one of the greatest challenges of oncology, they are extremely difficult to treat, because they are often detected too late, experts said on Wednesday at the opening of the XNUMXth World Gastrointestinal Cancer Congress in Barcelona.
Gastrointestinal neoplasms often do not cause any serious ailments because they usually have a latent course. Patients report late to the doctor when the disease is strongly developed. Already at diagnosis, metastases are often detected due to the extremely aggressive course of these neoplasms.
Prof. David H. Ilson of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York said stomach cancer is an example. In the European Union, five-year survival in this neoplasm is achieved in only 25 percent. patients. It is even worse in Poland – only 16 percent are still alive five years after the diagnosis. patients – according to the data of the Eurocare-5 report. The main reason for this is too late detection of the disease.
Stomach cancer is a particularly aggressive and debilitating type of cancer. It is the fourth most frequently diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the world. Every year it leads to over 900 thousand. deaths, in the European Union kills almost 140 thousand. people.
It is encouraging that stomach cancer incidence is declining in most industrialized countries. This neoplasm is an exception in this respect, since the overall incidence of neoplastic diseases is increasing due to the aging of the population.
Prof. Jeffrey Meyerhardt of Harvard Medical School in Boston believes this is associated with better food preservation and a decline in the percentage of people infected with H. pylori, which could initiate the development of stomach cancer. Only one in five people in the USA is infected. In Poland, the percentage of people infected with this microbe has decreased from 80 percent. up to 60 percent
Liver cancer deaths are still not being reduced. Every year, over 600 people are recognized in the world. new cases of this disease. It is the fifth most common type of cancer, but every third cancer patient dies from it.
It is usually hepatocellular carcinoma and is the leading cause of death in people with chronic liver disease. Many patients with advanced liver cancer also suffer from cirrhosis, which makes treatment even more difficult.
Gastrointestinal neoplasms are often inoperable at the time of diagnosis. This is the case with pancreatic cancer, which is expected to be detected in over 80 people in Europe this year. people. Only 15-20 percent. these patients can be operated on. The reason is the too large size of the tumor, infiltration of adjacent tissues and the formation of the so-called distant metastases, that is, to other organs.
Advanced gallbladder cancer metastasizes to the liver and pancreas. In three-quarters of patients, it is detected very late, when the tumor can no longer be removed. A patient in such a state can statistically survive no more than six months. Only 1-5 percent. miraculously, he is 5 years old.
Gallbladder neoplasm is asymptomatic for a long time, often masked with pains of gallstone disease, which, moreover, may contribute to the development of the disease. This is because the deposits in the follicle irritate the glandular epithelium that lines the walls of this organ, which may or may not lead to a tumor after many years. At least 80 percent. patients with this type of cancer previously suffered from gallstones for many years (those with a diameter greater than 3 cm are especially dangerous).
Better results are obtained in the treatment of colorectal cancer. According to Eurocare-5 data, in the European Union, 57% of colon cancer survives five years. sick, and in Poland – 47 percent. The five-year survival rate with anal cancer is 56 percent and 44 percent, respectively.
Colon cancer can be detected early by screening with colonoscopy. It also helps to prevent the disease because polyps that form malignant tumors can be removed during this colonoscopy examination. It is enough to undergo such a test at least once in your life to significantly reduce the risk of developing colorectal cancer – experts emphasize.
Experts also say that there is progress in the treatment of even advanced cancers of the gastrointestinal tract, although it is only gradual. The congress is to present the latest research results concerning, inter alia, improving the effectiveness of pancreatic cancer treatment.
From Barcelona, Zbigniew Wojtasiński (PAP)