Food reaches the stomach through a tube called the esophagus that connects the mouth to the stomach.
After leaving the stomach, partially digested food passes into the small intestine and then into the large intestine called the colon. Sometimes cancer can be in the stomach for a long time and can grow very large before it causes symptoms. In the early stages of cancer of the stomach, a patient may have indigestion and stomach discomfort, a bloated feeling after eating, mild nausea, loss of appetite, or heartburn. In more advanced stages of cancer of the stomach, the patient may have blood in the stool, vomiting, weight loss, or pain in the stomach. The chance of getting stomach cancer is higher if the patient has had an infection of the stomach caused by Helicobacter pylori, or if the patient is older, is a man, smokes cigarettes, or frequently eats a diet that includes lots of dry, salted foods.