<i>Helicobacter pylori </i>Infection and Gastric Cancer

Review

The Korean Journal of Helicobacter and Upper Gastrointestinal Research 2009;9(1):22-25.
Published online July 1, 2009.

Helicobacter pylori Infection and Gastric Cancer

Helicobacter pylori와 위암

김현수

전남대학교병원 소화기내과

Abstract

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infect a half of mankind and it is a Gram-negative bacterium etiologically involved in chronic atrophic gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, gastric cancer and gastric MALT lymphoma. H. pylori is designated as a definitive carcinogen by the WHO. Gastric cancer is the most common malignancy in Korea and is second reading cause of cancer related deaths each year. The progression to gastric cancer is a complex multi-step process involving complicated interaction between, environmental, bacterial and host factors. There is little doubt that H. pylori infection is a major risk factor in the pathogenesis of distal gastric cancer. Chronic H. pylori infection in stomach is also known to affect proliferation and cellular transformation. H. pylori infection is associated with the induction of chronic inflammation in gastric mucosa and with the progressive development of metaplastic change, and this metaplstic change of stomach precedes the development of most gastric adenocarcinoma. So we discuss the role of H. pylori in gatric carcinogenesis. (The Korean Journal of Helicobacter and Upper Gastrointestinal Research 2009;9:22-25)

Key Words: Helicobacter pylori, Gastric cancer