Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori Infection, Eradication Therapy, and Effectiveness of Eradication in Cancer Suppression or Prevention

摘要

Since April 1993, we have been examining the H. pylori infection status of patients who received upper gastrointestinal endoscopy at our clinic and wished to receive infection tests. We have also been conducting H. pylori eradication in the patients with H. py/ori-positive chronic gastritis since April 1994. Development of gastric cancer was observed in 5 of the 305 patients who received successful eradication. The cancer incidence rate was as low as 1.6%, and the mean age of the patients developing cancer was as high as 68 years old at the time of eradication. Development of gastric cancer after eradication in H. pylori-positive ulcers was noted only in 1 of the 360 cases of successful eradication. The cancer incidence rate was 0.27%, and the patient was 67 years of age. These observations indicate that eradication in younger patients is more likely to result in the suppression or prevention of carcinogenesis in the gastric mucosa.