Gastric morphological type: A supplementary addition for the evaluation of gastric cancer

Clinical and pathological features are important factors that affect the prognosis and treatment strategies of patients with gastric cancer (GC). An upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray examination is commonly used to show gastric mucosa and morphological changes. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the association between gastric morphological type and the clinicopathological features of patients with GC, based on double-contrast barium X-ray imaging. A total of 329 patients with GC who underwent upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray examination were analyzed. The gastric morphological type was divided into four types on barium X-ray images: Horn-type, hook-type, weak-type and waterfall-type stomach. The χ² test or Fisher's exact test was used to assess the association between gastric morphological type and the clinicopathological features. There was a statistically significant difference in the location of GC between different types of gastric morphology. Hook-type and horn-type GC were commonly present in the lower region of the stomach, while waterfall-type GC was mainly located in the upper region of the stomach. The incidence of waterfall-type non-poorly differentiated GC was higher than that of other gastric types. The incidence of waterfall-type intestinal-type GC was higher than that of other gastric types, and horn-type GC was more common in mixed-type GC. There was a statistically significant difference in the T-staging of GC between different types of gastric morphology. In conclusion, gastric morphological type correlates with the location and T-stage distribution of GC.