A surgical procedure in which, depending upon the diagnosis, either to repair a perforation or remove a part of the stomach or remove the entire stomach and reconstruct the digestive tract from esophagus to the intestine.
Surgery may be done to remove the cancer and part or all of the stomach, as well as some nearby lymph nodes and other structures, depending on the location and stage (extent) of the cancer. The surgeon will try to leave behind as much normal stomach as possible. Sometimes other organs will need to be removed as well.
Stomach ulcers (gastric ulcers) are open sores that develop on the lining of the stomach. Ulcers can also occur in part of the intestine just beyond the stomach. These are called duodenal ulcers. Stomach and duodenal ulcers are sometimes called peptic ulcers. This information applies to both.
Medications are usually used to treat mild-to-moderate ulcers. If you have a serious ulcer that keeps returning and doesn’t get better with medication, your doctor may suggest surgery. You’ll need emergency surgery if you have a bleeding ulcer (also called a hemorrhaging ulcer). The surgeon will identify the source of the bleeding (usually a small artery at the base of the ulcer) and fix it. You’ll need emergency surgery to close a perforated ulcer, or holes in the wall of your stomach or duodenum (the first part of your small intestine).
