[Role of surgery in the treatment of primary gastric lymphoma].

Primary gastric lymphoma's optimum management remains controversial. We reviewed our series of 23 patients with primary gastric lymphoma treated in our hospital between 1976 and 1998 with surgery as main therapy. Ten patients underwent surgical resection alone, whereas 13 also received postoperative adjuvant therapy, depending on the oncologist-haematologist's recommendations. No differences were found between treatments regarding mortality and morbidity. Clinical-histological features and patients, follow-up are analyzed. No patient died because of lymphoma and there wasn't either local or distant recurrence. We consider that surgery remains a valid option for the primary gastric lymphoma treatment. The introduction of combined modalities of radiation therapy and chemotherapy will depend on the final stage, the tumor histological features, and the feasibility of getting a radical resection.