Can late stage stomach cancer be cured?

The article was professionally consulted by Resident Doctor Le Thanh Tuan - Gastroenterologist - General Surgery Department, Vinmec Nha Trang International Hospital

End stage stomach cancer is when malignant cells begin to metastasize to many other organs and threaten the patient's life. The curable stage of gastric cancer does not depend on the prognosis, but the goal of treatment is almost exclusively to relieve symptoms.

Stomach cancer is divided into 5 stages from 0 to 4, depending on the size of the tumor and the degree of metastasis of the malignant cells. Stage 4 stomach cancer is stage 4, when cancer cells begin to spread to another part of the body. This is the most dangerous stage of the disease, with severe and life-threatening symptoms.
Whether or not advanced gastric cancer is curable depends on the prognosis of the disease. Treatment of stage 4 gastric cancer should be considered by experienced physicians. Accordingly, doctors will conduct consultations and have different opinions to plan the most suitable treatment for the patient.
You can talk to your doctor about your current prognosis, and consult other treatment plans if necessary. This helps you feel comfortable with your treatment options.

The following methods are applied in the treatment of advanced gastric cancer, including:
Chemotherapy, to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life. Targeted therapy with a monoclonal antibody with or without chemotherapy. Immune boosting therapy. Laser or endoscopic stenting, to relieve a blockage in the stomach, or gastric bypass surgery to remove the blockage. Radiation therapy is palliative, helping patients stop bleeding, relieve pain, or shrink a blocked tumor in the stomach. Surgery, as palliative therapy to stop bleeding or shrink a tumor in the stomach. Participation in clinical trials to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life (eg, new combinations of chemotherapy agents, targeted therapy with multikinase inhibitors, intraperitoneal chemotherapy at high temperature).

Treatment of late-stage stomach cancer is often very difficult, because the cancer cells have already begun to metastasize to other organs in the body and cause permanent damage.
End stage stomach cancer is considered difficult to cure. The goals of treatment at this stage are usually to prolong the patient's life and treat the symptoms of the cancer. Any treatment, including chemotherapy or radiation, serves as palliative therapy.
For stage 4 stomach cancer, surgery is rarely used, the main treatment is usually chemotherapy. Many studies show that the use of chemotherapy in gastric cancer treatment regimens has the potential to improve both time and quality of life for patients.
The diagnosis and detection of late stage cancer is often a shock to patients and their families. However, it's important to talk openly and honestly with your doctors and notify them when you notice unusual symptoms. Making sure the patient is physically and mentally comfortable is of the utmost importance.

End-stage stomach cancer and its treatments often cause severe physical, psychological, social, and financial side effects. Controlling all these factors also contributes significantly, helping to alleviate and improve symptoms for patients. This is an important part of patient care, including treatments aimed at slowing, stopping, or eliminating cancer.
Palliative care focuses on improving the patient's feelings throughout treatment by managing symptoms, supporting the patient and their family in a variety of ways (not necessarily related to to medicine).
This form of support always brings certain benefits to any patient population, regardless of age, type and stage of cancer. It is best to do this as soon as the patient is diagnosed with cancer, especially important for advanced cancer. People who receive palliative care support during cancer treatment have fewer severe symptoms, a better quality of life, and are more likely to be satisfied with their treatment options.

Palliative treatments vary widely and often include medications, dietary changes, relaxation techniques, mental/emotional support, and a number of other therapies.
Before starting treatment, talk with your doctor about the goals of each treatment plan. Ask your doctor about specific potential side effects and palliative care options.
During treatment for advanced stomach cancer, your doctor may ask you to answer a few questions to assess the effectiveness of your symptoms and the risk of side effects. Let your doctor know if you notice any problems.
In summary, although terminal gastric cancer is difficult to cure, it can be treated to alleviate symptoms, thereby prolonging survival time and improving quality of life for patients.
For early detection of stomach cancer, it is best to perform regular screening. Each person, especially those prone to stomach cancer, should have regular check-ups and cancer screening twice a year so that they can promptly detect the disease and treat it early, to avoid stomach cancer. If it progresses to the end stage, it will be very difficult to treat.
At Vinmec International General Hospital, gastric cancer screening is done through gastric endoscopy with NBI (Narrow Banding Imaging - endoscope with narrow light frequency band). The mucosal pathology analysis image gives clearer results than conventional endoscopy and the NBI narrowband endoscopic technique is considered the best method to help screen cancer of the gastrointestinal tract at the earliest. Currently.
Besides, the system of Laboratory Departments - Vinmec International General Hospital is a synchronous testing center with a full range of medical fields: Biochemistry, Hematology and Blood Transfusion, Microbiology - Parasitology and Pathology and 3 majors: Biochemistry, Hematology - Blood Transfusion, Microbiology - Parasitology all achieved ISO 15189:2012 certificates. The Research Institute of Stem Cells and Gene Technology at Vinmec also screened 15 common cancers in men and 17 common cancers in women with only one gene test.

References: Cancer.gov, cancer.net