Background/Aims: Mucinous gastric carcinoma (MGC) is a histopathologic subtype of gastric carcinoma with a poor prognosis. The purpose of this study was to compare the disease course of MGC with non-mucinous gastric carcinoma (NMGC) and study the clinicopathologic features that influence the prognosis of MGC patients. Methods: We reviewed the records of 2,383 patients with a confirmed histologic diagnosis of gastric carcinoma. There were 157 patients with MGC compared to 2,226 with NMGC. Results: A depth of invasion greater than T3 was more frequently found in MGC than in NMGC. The mean number of lymph nodes with metastases was 2.78 in MGC and 2.28 in NMGC (p < 0.001). There were more MGC patients with TNM stages II through IV (UICC classification). The overall survival rate was lower for the MGC group (46.5%) than for the NMGC group (64.0%; p < 0.05). Depth of invasion, lymph node metastases, and stage at diagnosis were significant factors affecting the outcome. Conclusion: The factors influencing the poorer prognosis (lower 5-year survival rate) of MGC are the advanced stage at the time of diagnosis, lymph node metastases, and a higher TNM status. Mucinous histologic type itself was not an independent predictive factor in survival.

Keywords:
Mucinous gastric carcinoma, Gastric carcinoma, non-mucinous, Prognosis
1.
Hoerr SO, Hazard JB, Bailey D: Prognosis in carcinoma of the stomach in relation to the microscopic type. Surg Gynecol Obstet 1966;122:485–494.
2.
Brander WL, Heedlam PRG, Morgan AD: Indolent mucoid carcinoma of stomach. J Clin Pathol 1974;27:536–541.
3.
Adachi Y, Mori M, Kido A, Shimono R, Maehara Y, Sugimachi K: A clinicopathologic study of mucinous gastric carcinoma. Cancer 1992;69:866–871.
4.
Japanese Research Society for Gastric Cancer: Japanese Classification of Gastric Carcinoma, ed 1. Tokyo, Kanehara, 1993.
5.
Hermanek P, Sobin LH (eds): TNM Classification of Malignant Tumors. Geneva, Union Internationale Contre le Cancer (UICC), 1987.
6.
Davis GR: Neoplasms of the stomach; in: Sleisenger MH, Fordtrans JS (eds): Gastrointestinal Disease, ed 5. Philadelphia, Saunders, 1993, pp 763–768.
7.
Lewin KJ, Appelman HD: Carcinoma of the stomach; in Rosai J, Sobin LH (eds).: Atlas of Tumor Pathology: Tumors of the Esophagus and Stomach. Washington, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, 1996, pp 285–300.
8.
Boland CR, Scheiman JM: Tumors of the stomach; in Yamada T, Alpers DH, Owyang C, Powell DW, Silverstein FE (eds): Textbook of Gastroenterology. Philadelphia, Lippincott, 1995, pp 1494–1502.
9.
Watanabe H, Jass JR, Sobin LH (eds): Histological Typing of Oesophageal and Gastric Tumors. WHO International Histological Classification of Tumors. Berlin, Springer, 1990, pp 1–26.
10.
Erenoglu C, Akin ML, Uluutku H, Tezcan L, Yildrim S, Batkin A: Angiogenesis predicts poor prognosis in gastric carcinoma. Dig Surg 2000;17:581–586.
11.
Davessar K, Pezzullo J, Kessimian N: Gastric adenocarcinoma. Prognostic significance of several pathologic parameters and histologic classification. Hum Pathol 1990;21:325–332.
12.
Kim JP: Results of surgery on 6,589 gastric cancer patients indicating immunochemosurgery as being the best multimodality treatment for advanced gastric cancer; in Nishi M, Ichikawa H, Nakajima T, Maruyama K, Tahara E (eds): Gastric Cancer. Tokyo, Springer, 1993, pp 358–377.
13.
Borchard F: Classification of gastric carcinoma. Hepatogastroenterology 1990;37:223–232.
14.
Kinosita T, Maruyama K, Sasako M, Okajima K: Treatment results of gastric cancer patients; Japanese experience; in Nishi M, Ichikawa H, Nakajima T, Maruyama K, Tahara E (eds): Gastric Cancer. Tokyo, Springer, 1993, pp 319–330.
15.
Wu CY, Yeh HZ, Shih RTP, Chen GH: A clinicopathologic study of mucinous gastric carcinoma including multivariate analysis. Cancer 1998;83:1312–1318.
16.
Hyung WJ, Noh SH, Shin DW, Yoo CH, Kim CB, Min JS, Lee KS: Clinicopathologic characteristics of mucinous gastric adenocarcinoma. Yonsei Med J 1999;40:99–106.
17.
Caruso RA: The histogenesis of mucinous adenocarcinoma of the stomach from observation in early gastric cancer. Ann Diagn Pathol 1999;3:160–164.
18.
Koufuji K, Takeda J, Toyonaga A, Kodama I, Aoyagi K, Yano S, Ohta J, Shirouzu K: Mucinous adenocarcinoma of the stomach – clinicopathological studies. Kurume Med J 1996;43:289–294.
19.
Ma J, De Boer WGRM, Nayman J: Intestinal mucinous substances in gastric intestinal metaplasia and carcinoma studied by immunofluorescence. Cancer 1982;49:1664–1667.
20.
Hitota T, Ming SC, Itabashi M, Nakajima T, Maruyama K, Tahara E: Gastric cancer; in Nishi M, Ichikawa H, Nakajima T, Maruyama K, Tahara E (eds): Gastric Cancer. Tokyo, Springer, 1993, pp 66–87.
© 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel
2002
Copyright / Drug Dosage / Disclaimer
Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.
Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.
You do not currently have access to this content.