Risk Factors of Gastric Cancer in Wuwei City-an Endemic Region of Gastric Cancer

摘要

OBJECTIVE Studies have shown that risk factors of gastric cancer include living habits, eating moldy pickled food, dystrophy, lack of nutrients, and genetics, etc. This study explores the prevalence of these factors in Wuwei, a city in northwest China with a high incidence of gastric cancer. METHODS Family histories of the residents in Wuwei City were investigated with a case-control method. Segregation ratio and heredity degree of gastric cancer were calculated using the Li-Mantel-Cart and Falconer's regression methods. Chronic gastritis patients were followed-up by home visits, gastroscopy, and pathology. Carcinogenic fungi and volatilile N-nitroso compounds were noted in the residents' meals. Helicobactor pylori (Hp) was assessed in their gastric mucosa and the total content of serum vitamin C in 293 healthy adults was determined. RESULTS In Wuwei City, the segregation ratio of gastric cancer was 0.077. The heredity degree of first-degree relatives was 22.91%. The incidence rate of cancer per year in people in an atrophic gastritis group was 1.09%. Eight kinds of nitrosamines and 14 kinds of carcinogenic fungi were detected in the residents' food. Total average vitamin C in the serum of the 293 healthy adults in the summer was 5.74 ± 2.79 mg/L. The positive rate of Hp in gastric mucosa of the residents was 67%. CONCLUSION The major extrinsic factors include infection of Hp, atrophic gastritis (especially atrophic hyperplasia), and genetic susceptibility.