Stomach anatomy in 3D
The stomach is a pouch in the upper left of the abdomen, below the diaphragm. It mixes food arriving from the oesophagus with gastric juice and passes it on to the small intestine. It has four parts: the cardia where the oesophagus joins, the fundus that bulges above it, the body in the middle and the pyloric part that leads to the duodenum. The concave inner edge is the lesser curvature and the convex outer edge the greater curvature, and the pyloric sphincter guards the opening into the duodenum.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the stomach?
The stomach is a pouch in the upper left of the abdomen, below the diaphragm.
What does the stomach do?
It mixes food arriving from the oesophagus with gastric juice and passes it on to the small intestine.
Which body system does the stomach belong to?
The stomach belongs to the digestive system. The digestive system is made up of the digestive tract running from mouth to anus (oesophagus, stomach, small and large intestine) and the liver, gallbladder and pancreas, which make digestive juices and send them into the tract.
What are the parts of the stomach?
The cardia, fundus, body and pyloric part. The pylorus at the end of the pyloric part opens into the duodenum.
Parts of the stomach
- Oesophagus: The tube that carries swallowed food down to the stomach.
Other organs
Compare with neighbouring organs
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Related reading
- Coffee on an empty stomach after a broken night: what a study found about blood sugar
- Ultra-processed food and the gut microbiome: what the research shows, and what it doesn’t
Once the 3D model loads you can turn it and select each part.