What is the best treatment for my father's stomach cancer?

Hello,

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As seen in your reports, your father had stomach cancer, which is stage III. He will definitely need further treatment to avoid recurrence of the tumor. Usually, treatment should be started within 6 to 8 weeks. He has two options: Only chemotherapy or chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Before that, I would advise you to undergo a CT scan and tumor markers like CEA and CA 19.9 to look for any evidence of residual disease at four weeks after surgery, as residual disease after surgery will be considered high risk. If you are able to get a PET CT, then it is better.

There are certain poor markers in his tumor (attachment removed to protect patient identity), like signet ring histology, lymphovascular and perineural invasion, node positivity, and a bit of close margin. All these factors make him a high risk for recurrence.

Though there is no definite advantage of chemo and radio vs chemo only, those who are at high risk for recurrence benefit from chemo and radio. So in his case, I would opt for chemo and radiotherapy. But before going ahead with this, I will definitely need to assess the patient's general condition and how he is taking his nutrition. Whether he is fit to receive this treatment, otherwise, I would opt for chemotherapy only. Therefore, I would advise you to take further treatment at the center, which has both facilities.

Depending on what type of chemo regimen is followed, the duration of treatment will be around six months. On average, around 50 percent of patients with stage III stomach cancer will be alive for three years if they receive adequate treatment.

I hope this information helps you.

Feel free to reach out in case of further queries.

Thank you.