Objective: To study the outcome of surgical therapy of perforation of gastric cancer.
Methods: The clinical data of 37 cases with perforation of gastric carcinoma  which  underwent different surgical procedures were analyzed retrospectively. Among them, 24 cases underwent partial gastrectomy,8 cases underwent radical mastectomy,4 cases had repair of perforation. 1 case received nonoperative therapy.
Results: The preoperative diagnotic rate was 24.3%,and misdiagonsis rate was 75.7%. The perioperative mortality rate was 5.4%, including 1 case that underwent repair of perforation. The postoperative  complication rate of patients undergoing palliative gastrectomy, radical gastric cancer operation and repair of perforation was  41.7%, 25.0% and 75.0%, respectively,and the mean survival time was 25 months, 29 months and 3.0 months, respectively.The partial gastrectomy and radical mastectomy patients had significantly better outcomes than those who underwent repair of perforation or received nonoperative therapy.
Conclusions:   For patients with perforation of gastric cancer with resectable lesions and who are in good general coaditon, a onestage radical gastric resection or palliative subtotal gastrectomy can be performed.