10 Gastric Cancer Symptoms
Symptom #9: Lymphadenopathy
Lymphadenopathy reflects the presence of diseases involving the reticuloendothelial system (RES), which includes lymph nodes, but mainly involves the liver. Affected lymph nodes are abnormal in consistency and size, due to an increase in normal cells (lymphocytes and macrophages) in response to an antigen (foreign substance that induces an immune response in the body). Lymphadenopathy is a non-specific finding on physical examination and can be caused by common infections, cancers, and autoimmune diseases.
In cancer, when malignant cells break away from a tumor, they can travel through the lymph system and end up in lymph nodes (regional metastasis). There, they can grow and cause lymphadenopathies. In gastric cancer, some of the lymph nodes that may be affected are the lymph nodes in the anterior axillary (Irish node) and left supraclavicular lymph nodes (Virchow nodes). Lymphadenopathy that affects the Virchow nodes usually indicates spread or metastasis of the cancer.
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