Korean Gastric Cancer Association Nationwide Survey on Gastric Cancer in 2014

PURPOSE: The Korean Gastric Cancer Association (KGCA) has conducted nationwide surveys every 5 years, targeting patients who received surgical treatment for gastric cancer. We report the results of the 2014 nationwide survey and compare them to those of the 1995, 1999, 2004, and 2009 surveys. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From March 2015 to January 2016, a standardized case report form was sent to every member of the KGCA via e-mail. The survey consisted of 29 questions, regarding patient demographics as well as tumor-, and surgery-related factors. The completed data forms were analyzed by the KGCA information committee. RESULTS: Data on 15,613 patients were collected from 69 institutions. The mean age was 60.9±12.1 years, and the proportion of patients more than 70 years of age increased from 9.1% in 1995 to 25.3% in 2014. Proximal cancer incidence steadily increased from 11.2% in 1995 to 16.0% in 2014. Early gastric cancer incidence consistently increased and accounted for 61.0% of all cases in 2014. The surgical approach was diversified in 2014, and 7,818 cases (50.1%) were treated with a minimally invasive approach. The most common anastomosis was Billroth I (50.2%) after distal gastrectomy, and the proportion of Roux-en-Y anastomoses performed increased to 8.6%. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this survey are expected to be important data for future studies and to be useful for generating a national cancer control program.