[Surface gastric cancer. Lymphatic metastases].

We present 10 cases of early gastric carcinoma with lymph node invasion in a series of 40 cases early gastric cancer operated between 1974 and 1984 in our unit. Two tumours were mucosal and 8 were submucosal. One tumour was polypoid, 5 were superficiel and 4 were ulcerated. The mean number of invaded lymph nodes was 2.7. We performed a total gastrectomy in two patients and a distal gastrectomy in the other eight patients. Two patients died 26 and 27 months after the operation. The others are alive and tumour free. We believe that early gastric cancer must be treated aggressively by means of total or partial gastrectomy with resection of the N1 and N2 lymph node chains, when ever possible.