He conquered the world, but stomach cancer conquered him. Yes, it is true of the famous legend NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. Born on August 15, 1769 Napoleon Bonaparte rose to the pinnacle of fame from absolutely nothing through his sheer ingenuity and merciless efficiency. He was the emperor of France and was victorious over the nations. Defeated by the British he was imprisoned and exiled to the island of Saint Helena from 15th October 1815. He died on 5th May 1821.
The cause of death of Napoleon Bonaparte is a disputable issue and remains controversial even today. Napoleon’s personal physician Francesco Antommarchi, declared the cause of death as stomach cancer in Napoleon’s death certificate. Subsequently, there were many instances where in the cause of Napoleon’s death was claimed to be arsenic poisoning.
In May 2005, a team of Swiss physicians claimed stomach cancer as the reason for Napoleon’s death. In October 2005, a document uncovered in Scotland gave a full account of Napoleon’s autopsy which seemed to confirm Napoleon’s personal physician’s death certificate that Napoleon died from Stomach cancer.
Basics of Stomach
The word stomach is derived from Greek word stomachus. Stomach is an empty muscular, bean shaped sac which is part of our digestive tract and located at the upper portion of abdomen between the esophagus and intestines under the ribs. Stomach plays an important role in the digestion of food we take. It temporarily stores the food, breaks down the food into smaller portions, and absorbs certain nutrients in the food. The stomach wall consists of five layers namely the inner most layer, the lining of the stomach also called as mucosa, the supportive tissue of the mucosa called submucosa, muscular layer made of muscles, the tissue that support the outer layer called subserosa and the outermost layer that covers the stomach called serosa.
Stomach Cancer
When the normal process of division, growth and death, in the cells goes wrong, new cells are created abnormally resulting in the unnecessary build up of unwanted cells in the form of lumps of mass called polyp or tumor. These tumors can be benign (not cancerous) and malignant (cancerous). Benign tumors are not as harmful as malignant tumors.
Stomach cancer also called as gastric cancer usually begins in the inner layer of the stomach and may spread to the other layers of the stomach. From the outer layer of the stomach cancer can grow into the nearby organs such as pancreas, esophagus and intestines. The cancer cells of the stomach can break away from the original tumor, enter into the blood stream or lymph vessels (tubes that carry lymphatic fluid) and spread to distant parts of the body. When the cancer spreads, it is called metastasis.
Risk factors
The exact cause of stomach cancer is not known. But following are some of the risk factors that may increase the risk of stomach cancer.
- H. pylori infection: H. pylori is a bacterium that generally infects the inner lining of the stomach. This infection may cause the inflammation of the gastric mucosa and the incidence of ulcers (breakage of the inner lining) of the stomach and a very small number of people may develop stomach cancer.
- Chronic inflammation of the stomach: People suffering from pernicious anemia (low red blood cell count due to body’s inability to absorb Vitamin B12) or individuals who have part of their stomach removed may have long-term inflammation of the stomach and are at higher risk of developing stomach cancer.
- Tobacco smokers: Individuals who smoke are at higher risk of developing stomach cancer and heavy smokers are at higher risk.
- Family history: If any close relatives have a history of stomach cancer, then the risk of developing stomach is higher.
- Lifestyle: If you have a lifestyle of consuming salted, smoked or pickled foods then you stand higher chance of having stomach cancer. Similarly with the people who are obese and not actively involved in any physical activity or exercise, the risk of stomach cancer is higher. If you are in the habit of consuming foods with less vegetables and fruits.
- Age and sex: Stomach cancers mostly occur in men and among the individuals who are above the age of 55 years.
Even if you have any of the above risk factors, it does mean that you will develop stomach cancer. On the other hand, even if you do not have any of the risk factors does not mean that you will never develop stomach cancer.
Stomach cancer cannot be prevented. But you can avoid the risk factors and adopt a healthy lifestyle such as including more vegetables and fruits in your diet, avoiding salted, smoked or pickled foods and resorting to physical exercise. If you are a smoker, you can stop smoking to reduce the risk of stomach cancer.
Symptoms of stomach cancer
1. There may not be any symptoms at the early stages of stomach cancer. Nevertheless some of the vague symptoms at the early stage can be:
- Indigestion and stomach discomfort
- Sensation of vomiting and nausea
- Feeling of fullness or loss of appetite or loss of weight
- Feeling of tiredness or fatigue
2. The symptoms at the later stages of stomach cancer include:
- Bloody stools or black stools
- Feeling of fullness after eating a small portion
- Stomach upset after eating and vomiting or vomiting blood
- Severe stomach pain after taking food
- Loss of weight with no apparent reason
Diagnosis
After a thorough physical exam, if your doctor suspects that you may have stomach cancer, he may perform a procedure called endoscopy. Before this procedure your doctor may give you medicine to make you comfortable. Subsequently, a thin tube inserted through your mouth into your stomach to see whether you have any tumor. Your doctor may take a sample of the tumor (biopsy) for further analysis and testing of cancer. The sample of your tumor is analyzed at a lab to check whether the tumor is benign or malignant.
Treatment
Various options available for the treatment of stomach cancer are surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or a combination of these treatments. Depending on the cancer, your doctor may choose appropriate mode of treatment. The cancer may be localized and it may have spread to other organs in the body. The choice of treatment also depends on the age and other prevailing conditions of the patient.
Surgery: The objective of the surgery is to remove all the cancerous part or cells and may be a part of healthy tissue as required depending on the type and severity of the cancer. The stomach may be removed partially or totally; in addition the affected lymph nodes may be removed. Stomach surgery involves risk of infection and bleeding. Other problems such as digestive problems, vomiting or diarrhea may occur after surgery.
Radiation therapy: Radiation therapy is used before the surgery to shrink tumors and cancerous cells. It can also be used after the surgery to remove any remaining cancerous cells. It is also used along with chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy: Killing the cancerous cells that have spread to other parts of the body through medicines is called chemotherapy. It can be administered before and after surgery or radiation therapy. The medicines are used based on the type of stomach cancer you have and how far the cancer has spread. Side effects of chemotherapy also depend on the medicines used for chemotherapy.
The survival rates of stomach cancers are low as the disease is usually diagnosed in advanced stages. The overall 5 year survival for stomach cancer is about 20%. If the cancer is in early stage and it has not spread to the lymph nodes, then the survival may be as high as 80%.
Summary
Stomach is an important organ of the body and any cancerous growth may affect the whole body. Treatment is effective if the cancer is detected on time. Based on your age, other health conditions and the severity and location of the cancer, your doctor may choose various available options. The risk of developing a stomach cancer may be reduced by adopting healthy lifestyle of eating health foods and indulging in physical exercise.
