Causes & Risk Factors

Researchers aren’t clear about what causes abdominal cancer, however, they have found several factors that might affect a person’s risk of getting the cancer:

  • Diet: Being on a diet that is high in salty foods and low in fruits and vegetables.
  • Sex and Age: This includes being older or male.
  • Family History: Having a family member who has had some type of abdominal cancer.
  • Infection: This includes infection from Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria.
  • Blood type: Specifically Type-A blood
  • Place of occupation: Working in coal, metal, timber, or rubber industries.
  • Drinking alcohol regularly
  • Obesity
  • Smoking
  • Diabetes
  • Exposure to asbestos
  • Long-term stomach inflammation (gastritis)
  • Chronic hepatitis B or C infection
  • Chronic pancreatitis

When to See a Doctor

If you have any continual signs or symptoms of stomach cancer, make an appointment with your doctor right away. Also, make an appointment if you contain any of the risk factors associated with the cancer.

‍Our Cancer Services

Depending on the type of cancer and how far it has spread, BASS Cancer Center and the BASS Medical Group offers a wide range of treatment options, including surgery, radiation therapy, and systemic therapies.   

Our state-of-the-art cancer center features a full-service medical oncology clinic, including infusion suite, multiple exam rooms, and a PET/CT scanner. We also provide the most technologically advanced radiation oncology treatment in California. Our cancer experts use an Elekta VersaHD CT-Guided linear accelerator with Visionrt’s AlignRT Surface Guided technology (SGRT) and an MR-Guided Linear Accelerator (ViewRay MRIdian).

The VersaHD and MRIdian augment each platform’s capabilities and give the patient and BASS physician an unprecedented ability to tailor a radiotherapy treatment course best fit for each person’s case. Our AlignRT SGRT platform utilizes innovative optical technology to accurately track a patient’s position before and during treatment without exposing them to any additional radiation (commonly needed by other radiotherapy platforms for maintaining setup). Additionally, SGRT allows some patients the choice to avoid permanent marks on their bodies.