[The clinical aspects of 49 cases of early gastric cancer].

Forty-nine consecutive patients with early gastric cancer (EGC), observed from January 1978 to December 1992 in the Surgery Department of our Institute, were included in a retrospective study. The EGC prevalence in the overall cases of gastric cancer was 11%. This frequency was 8% in the period 1978-1985 and 15% in the period 1986-1992. All patients underwent gastroscopy with gastric biopsy, but only in 35 cases (72%) was a preoperative diagnosis of gastric cancer possible. In the remaining 14 cases only the histological examination of surgical specimens made possible a definitive diagnosis. A subtotal gastrectomy was carried out in 36 cases (73%), a total gastrectomy in 12 cases (25%) while only in one case (2%) was a superior polar resection carried out. The postoperative morbidity was 5% and mortality was 2%. The median survival was 61 months and, at the moment, 41 patients are alive and free from disease. Our data confirm the favourable prognosis of EGC compared to the advanced gastric cancer. We think it useful to carry out a routine gastroscopy when there are symptoms related to the upper abdomen in order to make an early diagnosis of gastric cancer.