Clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes in stage I-III mucinous gastric adenocarcinoma: A retrospective study at a single medical center

Background: The clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes of mucinous gastric adenocarcinoma (GC) remain unclear. We report the clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients with mucinous histology who underwent radical-intent gastrectomy. Methods: We reviewed the medical records of 1470 patients with pathologically proven undifferentiated GC undergoing radical-intent gastrectomy between 1995 and 2007. The patients were stratified into three groups according to their histological type: mucinous carcinoma (MC), signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC), and poorly differentiated carcinoma (PDC). Clinicopathological factors affecting prognosis were collected prospectively and analyzed. Results: In stage III MC, the age and size were significantly greater and larger than in SRCC and PDC; a lower proportion of perineural invasion was identified in MC, and female predominance was noted in SRCC in comparison with MC and PDC. The cumulative overall survival rates of stage I-III GC patients with MC were significantly superior compared to those with PDC, but not SRCC. Stage III GC patients with MC had a better prognosis than those with SRCC or PDC; the difference in survival was not evident in stages I or II. Conclusions: Thus, MC presents with different clinicopathological features and prognosis from SRCC and PDC. The patients with stage III gastric MC had favorable outcomes.