BACKGROUND: Papillary gastric carcinoma (PGC) is a rare histologic entity among gastric adenocarcinomas. The aim of this study was to clarify the clinicopathologic characteristics of PGC, including the survival rate, recurrence pattern, and factors influencing the prognosis of patients with PGC.METHODS: The clinicopathologic findings of 65 patients with PGC and 566 patients with non-papillary gastric carcinoma (NGC) were examined and compared. The tumor was classified as PGC when more than 50% of the tumor area contained papillary structures. Survival rates were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and were assessed by the generalized Wilcoxon test. Prognostic factors were evaluated by univariate analysis, using the chi(2) test and Student's t-test, and confirmed by multivariate analysis, using the Cox proportional hazards model.RESULTS: PGC was characteristically found in patients over 65 years of age (68%), was located in the upper one-third of the stomach (37%), was of grossly localized type (85%), was negative for serosal invasion (86%), and was associated with liver metastasis (14%). The overall 5-year survival rate for patients with PGC was significantly lower than the rate for those with NGC (63% vs 76%) ( P < 0.05). Although the 5-year survival rate for each stage of PGC and NGC did not differ significantly, the death of PGC patients was more frequently associated with liver metastasis (62%) than with peritoneal dissemination (5%). Independent prognostic factors of PGC were liver metastasis, serosal invasion, and lymph node metastasis.CONCLUSION: These results suggest that PGC is characterized by advanced patient age, proximal tumor location, grossly localized type, negative serosal invasion, and frequent liver metastasis. A poor prognosis for patients with PGC is associated with the presence or recurrence of liver metastasis.