Causes and Diagnoses
Causes and Diagnoses of Gastric Cancer
The cause of gastric cancer is unknown, but risk factors include:
- Diet
- Alcohol and tobacco use
- Pernicious anemia
- Gastric polyps
- Ulcers
- Exposure to certain industrial chemicals
Diagnoses
Diagnosing stomach cancer begins with an assessment of your medical history and a physical exam. Your physician may also order diagnostic tests, including:
- Fecal occult blood test to search for blood in your stool
- Upper GI series using a barium swallow with X-ray
- Upper endoscopy or gastroscopy using a thin, flexible and lighted tube called an endoscope
- Endoscopic ultrasound sound imaging using a thin, flexible tube
- Biopsy via gastroscope taking a small sample of tissue during a gastroscopy
Looking at the cells from a biopsy under a microscope is the only definitive way to diagnose stomach cancer.
