Newly Diagnosed?
We Can Help Getting the correct diagnosis and the most appropriate treatment from the start is crucial 
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To diagnose stomach cancer, a physical exam is usually conducted first -- to feel for fluid, swelling, or changes in the abdominal area. Additional laboratory studies, such as blood tests, may also be performed.
If further diagnostic tests are necessary, the doctor may perform a series of upper gastrointestinal x-rays, which include a barium x-ray, as well as an endoscopy.
For a barium x-ray, the patient is asked to drink a silver-white metallic liquid known as barium, which helps illuminate the image of the stomach on an x-ray. The test may be performed in a doctor's office or in the radiology department of a hospital. In endoscopy, the doctor examines the interior lining of the stomach using a thin, lighted tube, called an endoscope. The endoscope is inserted through the mouth and guided into the stomach, and the camera at the end of the tube enables the doctor to see inside the stomach. Small samples of tissue may be removed during endoscopy to be examined for cancer cells. The patient will receive a spray of anesthetic in the throat, or other medication, to ensure comfort during the examination.
Once a diagnosis has been made, the next step is to determine if and how far the cancer may have spread to the other layers of the stomach, nearby organs, and nearby lymph nodes. This process is called staging, and it is an important factor in deciding which treatment would be most beneficial to the patient.
Computed tomography (CT) is often used for staging stomach cancer, as is positron-emission tomography (PET) scanning. Endoscopic ultrasound is another test which may be used during diagnosis and also staging. Similar to endoscopy, endoscopic ultrasound involves the insertion of a thin tube into the mouth and down into the stomach. At the tip of the tube is a small ultrasound probe that bounces sound waves off the walls of the stomach.
Laparoscopy is a minimally invasive surgical technique doctors may use to stage stomach cancer. During this procedure, a laparoscope -- a thin, lighted tube with a camera on its tip -- is inserted into the abdominal area through a small incision and the image is projected onto a large viewing screen. Guided by the laparoscope, the surgeon is able to inspect the inside of the abdomen and remove tissue samples using specially designed surgical instruments. This procedure can be used to inspect the outside wall of the stomach, examine lymph nodes, and evaluate the surfaces of other abdominal organs to determine if the cancer has spread to those areas.
