Objective: To screen and collect the familial gastric cancer (FGC) kindreds for exploring its clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed among 3640 patients with gastric cancer at 5 hospitals in Guangdong province between 2000 and 2007 and FGC kindreds were diagnosed according to the Amsterdam criteria. Their pedigree features and cancer incidence were analyzed. Clinical characteristics and prognosis were compared between FGC and sporadic gastric cancer (SGC) patients. Survival curves and overall five-year survival rates were established according to the Kaplan-Meier and Log-rank methods. Hazard ratios for death were calculated by Cox regression analysis.
Results: A total of 112 FGC kindreds (3.1%) were diagnosed among 3640 gastric cancer patients. In these 112 FGC families, 182 malignant tumors were diagnosed in the first- and second-degree relatives. Gastric cancer (n = 154, 84.6%), esophageal cancer (n = 8, 4.4%) and lung cancer (n = 6, 3.3%) were most common tumors. Tumor types in male proband families did not differ from those in female counterparts (P = 0.644). Most tumors occurred in the first-degree relatives and the ratio of male-to-female was 106:44. The mean age of FGC patients at 54 years was 10 years younger than that of SGC patients. No differences existed in tumor size, tumor location, Borrmann type, pT or pN between the FGC and SGC patients. The overall 5-year survival was 56.0% for FGC patients and 48.8% for SGC patients. Univariable (P = 0.287) and multivariable (HR = 1.101, P = 0.807) analyses demonstrated that FGC was not a significant prognostic factor.
Conclusions: Gastric cancer is the most common cancer in FGC families. The first-degree male relatives are at a high risk of developing gastric cancer. Not particular clinical characteristics but pedigree examination facilitates the diagnosis of FGC.