Effective follow-up for recurrence or a primary cancer in patients with early gastric cancer

Background: Patients with early gastric cancer have an excellent prognosis with low rates of recurrence, but may have an increased risk of developing a second primary cancer. Because the number of early gastric cancers has increased, clarification of both recurrences and second primary cancers is important for the development of effective postoperative follow-up programmes. Methods: Data on 1070 patients with early gastric cancer were analysed retrospectively with respect to the clinicopathological features of both recurrence and second primary cancers after surgical treatment. Results: Multivariate analysis showed that lymph node metastasis and older age were independent risk factors for recurrence of early gastric cancer. The incidence of second primary cancers was 5.0 per cent; lung and colorectal cancers were detected most frequently, followed by cancers in the oesophagus, breast and remnant stomach. Conclusion: Clinicopathological features of patients with early gastric cancer can be used to identify those most at risk of developing either recurrence or a second primary cancer.