Survival trends and clinicopathological characteristics for patients with gastric cancer in a reference center in Mexico.
Authors: Jorge Humberto Hernandez-Felix, Andrea Alcocer, Heidi Dalay Rodriguez Camacho, Vanessa Rosas Camargo, Laura Ogarrio Cano, Marco Antonio Jiménez Meza, Mariana Zentella, Salvador Escorza, Alma Lizette Rodriguez Herrera, Fidel David David Huitzil Melendez, Monica Isabel Meneses-Medina
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2025)

e16097 Background: Gastric cancer is common in Mexico, survival is low due to late-stage diagnosis and limited treatment access. We aimed to evaluate clinical data and survival trends in gastric cancer patients at a Mexican reference center. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of patients diagnosed with gastric adenocarcinoma treated at our institution between 2008 and 2023. Patients with missing data were excluded. The cohort was divided into four time periods (2008–2011, 2012–2015, 2016–2019, 2020–2023). Clinical and survival variables were compared across these periods. Overall survival (OS) was estimated using Kaplan-Meier and compared via the log-rank test. Results: 322 patients were included. Table 1 shows clinical and survival characteristics across periods. A statistically significant increase was observed in multidisciplinary tumor board (MTB) discussions, biomarker testing, and chemotherapy access. OS for advanced disease was 2.1 months (0.03–90) in 2008–2011, 4.36 months (0.33–131) in 2012–2015, 9.6 months (1.7–59.9) in 2016–2019, and 7.06 months (0.26–51) in 2020–2023 (p = 0.02). OS for locally advanced disease was 14 (4.6–100), 37.4 (0.6–138), 30.8 (4.2–86), and 32 (5.4–45.06), respectively (p = 0.28), and for localized disease, 154 (7.9–182), 28.4 (9–126), 39.5 (0.7–79.7), and 39.3 (1.1–48.1) (p = 0.59). Conclusions: This retrospective cohort showed an upward survival trend from 2008 to 2023, with OS tripling between the first and last periods. Increased MTB discussions, biomarker testing, and treatment access may explain this improvement. Characteristics of patients with gastric cancer among different periods of time in a reference center in Mexico. Variable TotalN=322(%) 2008–2011n= 101(%) 2012-2015n= 105(%) 2016-2019n= 41(%) 2020-2023n= 75(%) p Age (median, IQR) 60.5(49-71) 59 (49-70) 60 (46-69) 65 (54-76) 61 (51-69) 0.104 Young Adults (&lt;40 yrs) 42 (13) 11 (11) 19 (18) 4 (9.8) 8 (11) 0.316 SexMenWoman 147 (45.7)175 (54.3) 36 (36)65 (64) 53 (50)52 (50) 16 (39)25 (61) 42 (56)33 (44) 0.290 Clinical StageLocalizedLocally advancedMetastatic 48 (14.9)61 (18.9)213 (66.1) 7 (6.9)14 (14)80 (7.9) 15 (14)14 (13)76 (72) 13 (32)13 (32)15 (37) 13 (17)20 (27)42 (56) 0.001 HER 2 statusNegativePositive (3+)Indeterminate (2+)Not performed 109 (33.9)8 (2.5)3 (0.9)202 (62.7) 8 (7.9)0093(92.1) 29 (27.6)2 (1.9)1 (1)73 (69.5) 23 (56)2 (4.9)016 (39) 49 (65.3)4 (5.3)2 (2.7)20 (26.7) 0.001 MTB 89 (27.6) 9 (8.9) 22 (21 ) 13 (31.7) 45 (60) 0.001 Initial treatmentChemotherapyRadiotherapyPalliative careCurative intent surgeryPalliative surgeryOther 147 (45.7)5 (1.6)28 (8.7)56 (17.4)48 (14.9)38 (11.8) 37 (37)3 (3)9 (9)8 (8)23 (23)21 (20) 42 (40)0 (0)11 (10.5)21 (20)16 (15.2)15 (14.2) 16 (48.5)1 (3)4 (12.1)8 (24.2)3 (9.1)9 (21) 47 (62.7)1 (1.3)4 (5.3)16 (21.3)5 (6.7)2 (2.7) 0.003 OS months (median, 95 CI) 8.55(1.8-19) 4 (1-13) 8 (1-17) 30 (8-40) 12 (6-17) 0.02