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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · South Asian J Cancer
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1771275
Original Article

Adolescent and Young Adults with Gastric Cancer (AYA-GC)—The Dilemma of an Under-Represented Group: A Multi-Institutional Analysis from the Indian Subcontinent

S. S. Panda 
1   Department of Medical Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
S. S. Mohanty 
1   Department of Medical Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
A. Sanyal 
1   Department of Medical Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
P. Ganesan
2   Department of Medical Oncology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India
,
S. Kayal
2   Department of Medical Oncology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India
,
K. Rathnam
3   Department of Medical Oncology, Meenakshi Mission Medical College and Research Center, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
,
S. V. Saju 
3   Department of Medical Oncology, Meenakshi Mission Medical College and Research Center, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
,
S. Cyriac
4   Department of Medical Oncology, Amala Institute of Medical Sciences, Thrissur, Kerala, India
,
P. Unnikrishnan
4   Department of Medical Oncology, Amala Institute of Medical Sciences, Thrissur, Kerala, India
,
A. Sehrawat 
5   Department of Medical Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India
,
D. Sundriyal
5   Department of Medical Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India
,
A. Philips 
6   Department of Medical Oncology, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
,
D. Jain
7   Department of Surgery, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
,
S. S. Mohanty 
8   Department of Gastrosurgery, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
S. K. Agrawal
9   Department of Surgical Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha 'O' Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
L. Moharana 
1   Department of Medical Oncology, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
S. R. Choudhury
8   Department of Gastrosurgery, Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
,
B. Dubashi 
2   Department of Medical Oncology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India
› Author Affiliations Funding The authors are thankful to Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) through the National Biopharma Mission to provide funding for the research.
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Abstract

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Soumya Surath Panda

Gastric cancer (GC) is often ignored at a young age, which frequently leads to tragic consequences. The worldwide incidence of GC is increasing at a young age. In view of the limited Indian publication, we sought to characterize clinicopathological parameters and risk factors in the adolescents and young adults (AYA) population. Retrospective data from six centers (which are part of the Network of Oncology Clinical Trials in India) from 2015 to 2020 were collected from patient (18–39 years of age) records. This study was approved by the institutional ethical committee of individual centers. All statistical analyses were performed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS (Version 20). Data interpretation along with the analysis of obtained results was carried out using the following tests: Qualitative data was expressed in terms of frequency/percentage. One-hundred fifty-two AYA GC patients were enrolled. The 31 to 39 years age group was most affected in which 76.3% were females. The majority of patients were nonalcoholic (93.4%), nonsmokers (98.0%), and without a family history (98.0%). The most common (MC) presenting symptom was abdominal pain (67.1%). MC site was antrum (48%). Among esophagogastric junction cancers, the majority were type I and II Siewert classifications (77% [20/26] patients in cardia), MC histology—signet ring cell (67.1%) followed by diffuse-type (65.1%). Most were poorly differentiated (65.1%) and were diagnosed at an advanced stage (III & IV= 54.6%). This is one of our country's first large multicenter studies on GC in the AYA population. There was a higher female prevalence, aggressive tumor behavior and the majority of patients were diagnosed at a more advanced stage. The majority were nonsmokers with a negative family history. Awareness among general people, researchers, clinicians, and policymakers must be improved to better the loss of life years in the younger population.

Keywords

adolescent and young adults - gastric cancer - multi-institutional - incidence - prevalence - Network of Oncology Clinical Trials in India

Ethics Approval

The study was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee (vide IMS.SH/SOA/2021/097 letter dated 07.07.2021). All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.




Publication History

Article published online:
21 July 2023

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