Assessing the Epidemiological Trend of Gastric Cancer: A Retrospective Analysis From a Tertiary Care Hospital in Bangladesh
Md. Abdul Mumit Sarkar, Mariam Mohammad Sharaf, Abdullah Al Mukit, Md. Rofiqul Islam, Md. Shafiqul Islam, Md. Khalequzzaman Sarker, Manzurul Chowdhury, Md. Abdul AlimABSTRACT
Background and Aims
Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, affecting a substantial proportion of the population, and exhibits a geographical heterogeneity in incidence. Data on the epidemiology and trends of gastric cancer in Bangladesh remain limited. The study aimed to observe the trends in gastric cancer at a tertiary care hospital in Bangladesh.
Methods
This hospital‐based retrospective study was conducted in the department of Gastroenterology of Rajshahi Medical College from January 2018 to December 2025. All the patients who underwent upper GI endoscopy during the study period were initially enrolled. From the hospital records, including histopathology reports, confirmed cases of gastric cancers were included for this study.
Results
A total of 17,298 patients underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital from 2018 to 2025. Among them, 364 patients were diagnosed with gastric cancer (mean age: 56.7 ± 14.6 years; males 61.8%; male–female ratio 1.6:1). Adenocarcinoma was the most common histological type (98.3%). Significant female predominance was noticed among gastric cancer patients younger than 40 years ( p = 0.01). Overall, a declining trend in the detection of gastric cancer was observed, although age‐specific analysis revealed variable patterns. The antrum (180/364, 49.4%) was the most frequent tumor location, followed by the body (108/364, 29.6%) and fundus (76/364, 20.8%). An apparent increase in the proportion of antral tumors was noticed since 2021, whereas involvement of the body and fundus demonstrated inconsistent variations.
Conclusions
Gastric cancer detection at this center declined overall, but the female predominance among younger patients and the rising antral proportion suggest a possible shifting epidemiological pattern that warrants population‐based research and targeted early detection strategies.