Abstract

Introduction: <strong> Gastric cancer (GC) is the fifth most common type of malignant tumor, and it is the second main cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. However, its epidemiology is not well known in Brazil, particularly in the ABC region in São Paulo despite its importance as an economic and industrial center.
Objectives: The aims of this study were to identify the patients' profile, to verify the possible patterns of change throughout the decades and in patients according to each age group, and to analyze the main anatomopathological characteristics of these neoplasias in patients who underwent gastric cancer surgery in the ABC region in São Paulo.
Methods: This is a retrospective review of 1,838 histopathological gastric cancer cases diagnosed at the Department of Pathology, Centro Universitário Saúde ABC between the years 1974 and 2014. Morphological characteristics, such as the type of neoplasia (Lauren's classification), the gastric region as well as the characteristics and stage of the disease were analyzed. The study was divided into 2 groups: patients separated according to their age group (over and below 60years of age) and according to the 4 studied decades.
Results: Throughout the 4 decades, there was a male predominance of gastric cancer in patients who were aged 50years and over (77.3%) with no other epidemiological differences. The most frequent neoplasia was adenocarcinoma and the diffuse type was the most common. According to Borrman's classification, type III was the most prevalent. Regarding the location, the gastric antrum was the most common region. Upon using the age-group parameter (over and below 60years), it could be observed that the most frequent neoplasia in both groups was adenocarcinoma. Regarding the region of the tumor and Borrman's classification, the gastric antrum and type III were respectively the most prevalent in all patients.

Keywords

lauren, gastric cancer, histology, epidemiology, review