Advanced stomach cancer
Unfortunately advanced cancer can’t usually be cured. But treatment might control it, help symptoms, and improve your quality of life for some time.
Sometimes cancer is advanced when it is first diagnosed. Or the cancer has come back and spread after treatment for the original cancer.
Cancers that have spread to another part of the body are called:
secondary cancer
metastases
metastatic cancer
Doctors also describe how advanced stomach cancer is by using the number staging system. Advanced cancer is stage 4 in the number staging system.
Read more about stage 4 cancer and its treatment
Locally advanced cancer is cancer that has grown into the tissues around the stomach, or into nearby organs. It might be stage 3 or stage 4 in the number staging system. It is different to advanced cancer.
Stomach cancer can spread to the:
liver
lymph nodes
tissue lining the abdominal cavity (peritoneum)
lungs
Finding out that you can’t be cured is distressing and can be a shock. It’s common to feel uncertain and anxious. It's normal to not be able to think about anything else.
Lots of information and support is available to you, your family and friends. Some people find it helpful to find out more about their cancer and the treatments they might have. Many people find that knowing more about their situation can make it easier to cope.
Talk to your doctor or specialist nurse to understand:
what your diagnosis means
what is likely to happen
what treatment is available
how treatment can help you
what the side effects of the treatment are
You might feel that you don’t want to know much information straight away. Tell your doctor or nurse. You will always be able to ask for more information when you are ready.
Everyone is different and there is no right way to feel.
Many people want to know what the outlook is and how their cancer will develop. This is different for each person. Your cancer specialist has all the information about you and your cancer. They're the best person to discuss this with.
You can also talk to your specialist nurse.
We have some general information about survival for stomach cancer if this is something you want to read about.
Last reviewed: 29 Apr 2025
Next review due: 29 Apr 2028
Survival depends on many factors including the stage of your stomach cancer when you are diagnosed and how it has responded to treatment. The figures for stomach cancer survival can only be used as a general guide.
The symptoms of advanced stomach cancer depend on what part of the body the cancer has spread to.
You might have a number of tests to help diagnose stomach cancer and to find out the stage. This includes a test to look inside your stomach (gastroscopy) and you may have some scans.
Your treatment depends on whereabouts your cancer is in the stomach. How big it is, whether it has spread anywhere else in your body and your general health.
Coping with cancer can be difficult. Help and support is available. There are things you can do, people to help and ways to cope with a diagnosis of stomach cancer.
Stomach cancer is cancer that starts anywhere inside the stomach or the stomach wall. It’s also called gastric cancer.
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