Gastric cancer invading the lamina muscularis propria.

BACKGROUND. Gastric cancer invading the lamina muscularis propria is considered to be an intermediate stage between early and far advanced gastric cancer. This study evaluated the clinicopathological pictures of muscularis propria gastric cancer. METHODS. In the past 5 years, 407 patients with adenocarcinoma of stomach underwent radical gastrectomy in Department of Surgery, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei. Of them, 46 patients (11.3%) with gastric cancer invading the muscularis propria were studied. Their clinicopathologic features were further analyzed with special reference to the gross appearance of the tumor. RESULTS. Most muscularis propria gastric cancers occurred at lower stomach. Nodal spread accounted for 32.6% and was largely confined to n2 with limited involvement of n3. Borrmann type cancer comprised 63% (29/46) of cases and early-like type cancer comprised 37%. Early-like type cancer was smaller in size than Borrmann type cancer (p < 0.001). Nodal spread was more extent in Borrmann type cancer than in early-like type cancer. Other clinicopathologic features and survival were identical in both types of muscularis propria gastric cancer. CONCLUSIONS. Most muscularis propria gastric cancers were Borrmann type cancer grossly. Compared with the early-like type, the Borrmann type cancer was larger and had more extensive nodal spread.