Jakarta, goldensamoyed Indonesia
—
Painful feeling in the pit of my stomach,
nausea
, so that the burning sensation in the chest is often considered trivial.Many people think these complaints are just that
ulcer
or stomach acid due to late eating.
In fact, behind symptoms that appear mild, serious illnesses such as:
gastric cancer
.
Oncology surgical specialist at the Eka Tjipta Widjaja Cancer Center (ETWCC), Eka Hospital Group, Sonar Soni Panigoro, said that gastric cancer is known to have symptoms similar to common digestive disorders, so it is often missed early on.Misconceptions like this still often occur in society.
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“The problem is, the symptoms of stomach cancer are similar to stomach ulcers or GERD. So people feel, ‘Ah, this is the most common stomach ulcer,’ and then postpone going to the doctor,” said Sonar in his statement when attending the ETWCC event with the theme Integrated Approach in Oncology in Jakarta some time ago.
According to Sonar, cancer screening, especially those that do not have typical early symptoms such as stomach cancer, must be done as early as possible.The concept of cancer screening is actually carried out when a person does not yet have symptoms.
However, in practice this is not always easy to implement, especially for cancers located in the body such as the stomach.
“If there are even a few symptoms, you should immediately see a gastro specialist. Later you can do an endoscopy to see if there are any abnormalities in the stomach,” he explained.
He emphasized that digestive complaints that do not improve after about a month should also be suspicious.Especially if it is accompanied by additional symptoms such as increasingly severe pain, repeated vomiting, weight loss for no apparent reason, or blood in the stool.
“It’s simple like this, whatever the symptoms, if you don’t get better in a month, get checked immediately. Don’t delay,” said Sonar.
Symptoms are similar, diseases can be different
Gastric cancer is a type of cancer that is difficult to recognize from the start because the symptoms are not typical.Many sufferers only check themselves when their condition has worsened.
“That’s why stomach cancer is a bit difficult. Many Indonesians have stomach ulcers, so the symptoms are often considered the same,” said Sonar.
If initial treatment for an ulcer does not improve, the doctor will usually recommend further examination, such as endoscopy, to determine the cause of the complaint.
Facts on the ground show that there are big challenges in treating cancer, not only gastric cancer in Indonesia which is still struggling with delays in diagnosis.Sonar said that around 60-70 percent of cancer patients who come to the hospital are already in an advanced stage.
“From the past until now the condition is still the same. Most of the patients who come are at an advanced stage,” he said.
In fact, the higher the stage of cancer, the more limited the therapeutic options are and the chances of recovery decrease drastically.Currently, ETWCC is also developing genomic profiling services.This technology allows the detection of potential cancer through blood tests, even before symptoms appear.
“Just by using a blood sample, we can see whether there are cancer cells or not for several main types of cancer,” explained Sonar.
Even though technology continues to develop, Sonar emphasized that public awareness remains the main key.Recognizing the symptoms, not trivializing complaints, and immediately seeing a doctor can be simple but crucial steps in treating cancer.
“Don’t wait for it to get worse. If there are unusual symptoms and they don’t go away, it’s better to get checked. Early detection can save lives,” he concluded.
(tis/tis)
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