Stomach cancer is a type of cancer that develops in the lining of the stomach. Also, known as Gastric cancer, it affects the elderly more than the adult. According to the American Cancer Society, about 6 of every 10 people diagnosed with stomach cancer each year are 65 or older. Also, the lifetime risk of developing stomach cancer is higher in men (about 1 in 101) than in women (about 1 in 155).

A health expert, speaking to a leading media house, emphasized five common symptoms of stomach cancer that should not be ignored:

1. Unexplained weight loss: Losing weight without trying or experiencing an unexplained drop in appetite, which may signal cancer progression.

2. Pain in the upper part of the abdomen: Persistent or occasional pain in the stomach area, often after eating, can become more severe as the condition progresses.

3. Frequent vomiting after meals: Nausea, sometimes accompanied by vomiting, may occur especially after meals and is linked to cancer blocking or irritating the stomach.

4. Vomiting blood, which may appear coffee-colored: This can indicate bleeding in the stomach, often caused by ulcers or tumors, and requires immediate medical attention.

5. Black, tarry stools: This occurs when blood from the stomach is digested and passed through the intestines, signaling potential internal bleeding

There are also other concerning signs that should not be overlooked such as jaundice, unexplained weight loss, early onset of diabetes, dark stools, and loss of appetite. Health experts strongly advise seeking immediate medical attention if you notice any of these symptoms. If you or a loved one experience these signs, it's crucial to visit a physician for a thorough evaluation to rule out serious underlying health conditions.

How Does Stomach Cancer Spread?

Oncologist Dr Pankaj Kumar Pande, Director–Surgical Oncology, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, Delhi explained that this form of cancer spreads through three main pathways: Direct spread, lymphatic spread, and bloodstream.

1. Direct Spread: In its early stages, stomach cancer can invade nearby tissues and grow into the deeper layers of the stomach or spread to surrounding organs such as the oesophagus, liver, pancreas, or intestines.

2. Lymphatic Spread: Cancer cells can travel through the lymphatic system. The most common areas affected are the regional lymph nodes near the stomach, particularly those around the liver and diaphragm.

3. Bloodstream: "Cancer cells can enter the bloodstream and travel to distant parts of the body," which is a common route for stomach cancer to metastasize to distant organs.

He further explained that cancerous cells spread from the original tumour to other parts of the body through a process called Metastasis. The most common sites for the spread are the liver, lymph nodes, peritoneum, lungs, bones, and ovaries.

COVID-19 infections have resurfaced in India, with Andhra Pradesh reporting two deaths and several active cases, prompting health authorities to step up surveillance and preparedness measures.

A 52-year-old man from Kadapa's Rajampet area, who tested positive for COVID-19 after developing fever and cough, died while undergoing treatment at Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore.

In another case, a 43-year-old man from Kadapa, who was admitted to the Government General Hospital with health complications, tested positive and later died while receiving treatment in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit.

A 25-year-old medical student from Kadapa Medical College has also tested positive for the virus and is currently undergoing treatment through home isolation. Several more cases have also been reported.

What Variant Is Causing The Reported Cases?

Doctors say they have seen a rise in COVID-19 cases over the past few weeks.

Dr. Lancelot Pinto, Consultant Pulmonologist and Epidemiologist at the PD Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai, told HealthandMe that SARS-CoV-2 has frequently been detected in patients presenting with viral respiratory infections.

"So when we send throat swabs in the context of a viral respiratory infection, we have detected SARS-CoV-2 as the causative organism often. It doesn't seem that this is a more virulent strain based on our experience so far. But in those who are immunocompromised, who are vulnerable because of their health risks, it can cause severe disease."

While the exact variant behind these cases has not yet been confirmed and samples have been sent for genome sequencing, experts say the virus currently circulating in India is largely made up of Omicron sub-lineages.

"The virus currently circulating in India is largely made up of Omicron sub-lineages, which generally cause milder illness than earlier variants, though they remain highly transmissible," Dr. Neha Rastogi, Senior Consultant, Infectious Diseases, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, told HealthandMe.

Why Are We Still Seeing Severe COVID Despite Herd Immunity?

According to Dr. Pinto, viruses are capable of triggering what is known as an inflammatory cascade—a strong immune response that can sometimes contribute to severe illness.

"This cascade is such that there's a strong immune response to the virus that can sometimes be detrimental to humans, causing severe disease. We also know that any viral infection, however innocuous it may seem, has the potential of increasing your cardiovascular risk."

He explained that viral infections can also increase cardiovascular risk, meaning people already at risk of heart-related complications may experience poorer outcomes.

"And therefore, those who are at an increased risk of cardiovascular events could suffer from poor outcomes in the context of any viral infections."

Another concern, he said, is the limited availability of antiviral medicines.

"What has been concerning, though, is the difficulty of procuring antivirals at present. So drugs such as remdesivir and paxlovid are not easily available. And therefore, we are not able to offer it to vulnerable and high-risk individuals. And I hope this gets fixed in the near future."

Who Is At High Risk?

Although the circulating Omicron sub-lineages generally cause milder illness, they can still lead to severe disease in vulnerable individuals.

Those most at risk include:

• Senior citizens
• People with diabetes, heart disease, chronic lung disease, or chronic kidney disease
• Individuals with weakened immunity
• Pregnant women
• People who are unvaccinated or have not received recommended booster doses.

How To Reduce The Risk?

Despite the lower overall severity of the current variants, health experts say vigilance remains important. To reduce the risk of infection, people should stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations, wear masks in crowded indoor settings, maintain hand hygiene, ensure good ventilation, and avoid close contact when unwell.

Anyone experiencing symptoms such as fever, cough, or breathlessness should get tested and seek timely medical advice.

"If you are a high-risk individual and suffer from diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, or respiratory disease such as COPD, this is the time to be a little cautious about exposing yourself to those who are ill, trying and avoiding crowds, trying and avoiding places where there's a conglomeration of individuals together and easy to pick up viruses. Mask up with a high-efficiency mask if it's feasible, especially if you are exposed to such kind of situations," Dr Pinto said.

For people without these underlying conditions, he said the virus appears to behave much like other seasonal respiratory viruses.

"For the average person who does not have a high risk in terms of these comorbidities, it does appear that this virus behaves just like any other seasonal influenza virus or any other seasonal virus."

Europe's record-breaking June heatwave led to an estimated 10,000 excess deaths across 27 countries, with older adults accounting for the overwhelming majority of fatalities, according to official data.

Data published by EuroMOMO—a mortality monitoring network supported by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO)—showed around 10,000 excess deaths during the week of June 22-28, when extreme heat peaked across France, Spain, Britain and several other European countries.

More than 9,000 of these deaths were among people aged 65 years and older.

"To have this kind of excess at this time of year is unusual. It's really high," Lasse Vestergaard, Chief Physician at Denmark's Statens Serum Institut, which hosts EuroMOMO, was quoted as saying to Reuters news agency.

"It is difficult to explain this high excess mortality by anything but the extreme heat," he added.

The figures are based on all-cause mortality, meaning they include deaths from all causes rather than only those officially classified as heat-related.

Scientists have also said the late-June heatwave would have been "virtually impossible" without human-caused climate change, which is making extreme heat events more frequent and intense.

England And Wales Saw 2,700 Heat-Related Deaths

A separate analysis by researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Imperial College London, and the Met Office estimated more than 2,700 excess heat-related deaths during the May and June 2026 heatwaves in England and Wales.

Researchers estimated:

• Around 550 heat-related deaths occurred during the May 21-29 heatwave.
• Around 2,200 heat-related deaths occurred during the June 18-28 heatwave.

The study found that around 42% of the total heat-related deaths across both heatwaves were attributable to human-caused climate change.

Climate Change Intensified The Heat

According to the report, climate change increased daytime maximum temperatures across England and Wales by 3°C to 4°C.

The analysis estimated that climate change was responsible for:

• About 59% of heat-related deaths occurred during the May heatwave.
• Around 38% of heat-related deaths occurred during the June heatwave.

Both heatwaves shattered long-standing temperature records, with 35.1°C recorded in West London in May and 37°C in East Anglia in June.

"We are still in the first half of summer in the UK and large parts of England and Wales have already experienced two record-breaking heatwaves," said Dr Malcolm Mistry, Assistant Professor in Climate and Geo-spatial Modelling at LSHTM.

June 2026 Among The Hottest On Record

According to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), June 2026 was the hottest June ever recorded in western Europe and the second warmest globally.

The record temperatures were driven in part by the highest sea surface temperatures ever recorded for June.

"Heatwaves like this are what we expect to see in a changing climate," said John Kennedy, Head of Climate Information at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

He noted that Europe has warmed by around 2°C over the past 50 years, making it the world's fastest-warming continent and increasing the frequency of extreme heat events.

Why Extreme Heat Can Be Deadly

Extreme heat is often called the "silent killer" because heat-related deaths are frequently underreported. Globally, an estimated 489,000 people died from heat-related causes each year between 2000 and 2019, according to modeled estimates.

Heat stress develops when the body absorbs more heat than it can release. While sweating and increased blood flow to the skin normally help regulate body temperature, these cooling mechanisms become less effective during prolonged periods of intense heat—especially when humidity is high.

According to Lachlan McIver, Health Advisor at the WHO-WMO Climate and Health Joint Office, older adults, infants, pregnant women, outdoor workers, people experiencing homelessness, and those with chronic illnesses are at the greatest risk, although prolonged extreme heat can affect anyone.

In a breakthrough that could transform tuberculosis treatment (TB) in rural India, researchers from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have demonstrated that drones can dramatically speed up the transport of TB samples, helping patients receive a diagnosis faster and significantly reducing the cost of treatment.

ICMR Uses Drones To Transport Patient Samples

Published recently in the International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Open, the ICMR’s i-DRONE initiative is a pilot project conducted in Telangana’s Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri district.

The study is based on whether drones could transport sputum samples from remote health centres to TB diagnostic laboratories more efficiently than conventional road transport.

Researchers found that the turnaround time for TB diagnosis fell drastically from 15 days to just five days after drones were used to transport patients' sputum. The average time taken for diagnosis also dropped from 16.6 days to 6.9 days, helping patients seek TB treatment and care much earlier, which is a crucial factor in preventing disease progression and containing transmission.

The savings came primarily from eliminating repeated trips to distant diagnostic centres, reducing travel costs, wage losses, and other indirect expenses that often discourage people from seeking timely care.

The savings in patients’ costs primarily came from avoiding multiple trips to the diagnostic centres, wage losses, low travel costs, and other indirect expenses that often discourage patients from seeking timely care.

Also read: What Was The Pseudo-Tuberculosis Like 'Syndrome K' Saved Thousand Lives During World War II?

How Was The Study Conducted?

The year-long study is based on 840 patients, including 206 before the drone programme and 634 after its implementation. Instead of relying on road transport, healthcare workers collected sputum samples at the health facilities located in villages.

Drones then flew the samples directly to district TB laboratories, avoiding delays due to poor roads, difficult terrain, and limited public transport availability.

“The intervention demonstrated a significant reduction in the turnaround time and improved access to TB diagnosis in rural and remote Indian settings,” the researchers wrote.

The study also found that the speed of reporting improved substantially. Before drones were used, more than 90% of patients waited longer than two days to receive their test results. After the intervention, most patients received their reports within a day, allowing TB treatment to begin much sooner.

Bridging The Gap In Accessibility

Apart from faster diagnosis and low costs, researchers believe this technology could help overcome one of the biggest barriers to TB care - accessibility.

In several remote regions, patients often delay getting tested as travelling to district and city hospitals means losing a day’s wages, paying for transport, or arranging a family member to accompany them.

Drone transport takes away a significant part of that burden from patients. Healthcare workers who were interviewed during the project were also optimistic about using drone services and technology for other diseases beyond tuberculosis.

According to a companion feasibility study, many believed the same network and technology could eventually help transport blood samples, vaccines, medicines, and diagnostic specimens for other time-sensitive diseases.