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Symptoms of Cancer of the stomach

The main symptom of stomach cancer is pain, high in the abdomen between the ribs, that is often temporarily relieved by food.Other symptoms include:

persistent indigestion;

loss of appetite; 

difficulty swallowing;

weight loss;

feeling very full or bloated after eating;

feeling sick (nausea);

vomiting;

heartburn;

blood in the stools or black stools; and 

tiredness due to anaemia (from bleeding from the wall of the stomach).

Cancer of the stomach can be difficult to diagnose in its early stages. It can be quite advanced by the time it is identified. That is why it is important to get any symptoms checked out as soon as possible.

The symptoms of stomach cancer are difficult to distinguish from those of stomach (gastric) or duodenal (upper part of the small intestine) ulcers.

If the cancer has spread to other parts of the body such as the liver, small bowel or the pancreas, there may be other symptoms associated with this, such as dark coloured urine, back pain or pain in the rectum (back passage).