Stomach cancer physical examination
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
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Physical Examination
To find the cause of symptoms, the doctor asks about the patient's medical history, does a physical exam, and may order laboratory studies. The patient may also have one or all of the following exams:
- Gastroscopic exam is the diagnostic method of choice
- Upper GI series (may be called barium roentgenogram)
- Fecal occult blood test is obsolete except possibly as a screening test; a negative test proves nothing and a positive result may result from a large number of other conditions beside gastric carcinoma.
Abnormal tissue seen in a gastroscope examination will be biopsied by the surgeon or gastroenterologist. This tissue is then sent to a pathologist for histological examination under a microscope to check for the presence of cancerous cells. A biopsy, with subsequent histological analysis, is the only sure way to confirm the presence of cancer cells.
A condition of darkened hyperplasia of the skin, frequently of the axilla and groin, known as acanthosis nigricans, commonly prompts a study into gastric carcinoma. It should be noted that this hyperplasia can be found in obese individuals with no underlying cancer.