Discovered too late, this cancer is today the fifth more frequent in France, with around 6,500 new cases in 2018 (4,264 men, 2,293 women) and a sad assessment of more than 4,200 deaths the same year. Dr. Kierzek Alert: There is often no pain for weeks and the digestive signs that have gone unnoticed are attributed to an ulcer or gastritis. However, sudden food disgust is a signal that deserves immediate medical consultation: this discreet symptom can precede pain, weight loss or nausea.
Sudden disgust for meat, why is it important
From the beginnings of gastric cancer, your body can develop an aversion to a specific food, often meat. This sign, reported by Dr. Gérald Kierzek and underlined by Health planetmust alert, even in the absence of pain. The planned mechanisms (disgusting, disturbance of taste receptors or tumor metabolism) explain why a freshly refused taste or flavor can announce an invisible tumor during growth.
Other classic symptoms to monitor
Classic digestive symptoms often only appear to an advanced stage. These include in particular
- unusual fatigue;
- unexplained weight loss;
- loss of appetite;
- nausea, sometimes bloody vomiting;
- pain or pressure in the epigastric region;
- sudden intolerance to certain foods such as coffee;
- Even blood in stool or anemia.
Risk factors and the state of diagnosis in France
In France, gastric cancer is often associated with a chronic infection in Helicobacter pylori, a diet that is too salty or rich in smoked products, smoking, family or genetic history, or chronic gastritis. The diagnosis is based on fibroscopy or gastroscopy, which makes it possible to observe the gastric mucosa and to make biopsies in the event of suspicious lesion.