Low Frequency of Lymph Node Metastases in Patients in the United States With Early-stage Gastric Cancers That Fulfill Japanese Endoscopic Resection Criteria.

The frequency of lymph node metastases among patients with early gastric cancer in a US population is higher than that of published Asian series. However, early gastric cancer lesions that meet the Japanese standard criteria for ER are associated with negligible risk of metastasis to lymph nodes, so ER can be recommended for definitive therapy. Expanded criteria cancers appear to have a higher risk of metastasis to lymph nodes, so ER may be considered for select cases.