Helicobacter pylori and gastric cancer: correlation with gastritis, intestinal metaplasia, and tumour histology.

This study aimed to examine the association between Helicobacter pylori, histological gastritis, and intestinal metaplasia in gastric cancers of different histological types. A total of 169 gastrectomy specimens received in one pathology department were studied. Altogether 156 were adenocarcinomas (intestinal type 87, diffuse type 50, mixed type 19). Gastritis occurred in 137 of 163 body specimens (84%) and in 126 of 131 antral specimens (96%). Its presence was unrelated to tumour histology. Atrophic gastritis was more common in both body and antral mucosa in intestinal type compared with diffuse type carcinoma. This was also true for intestinal metaplasia of the body, but not of the antral mucosa. H pylori was present in 101 of 163 (62%) body specimens and 56 of 131 (43%) antral specimens. In intestinal type carcinoma, H pylori was found in 52/84 (62%) body specimens and in 24/70 (34%) antral specimens, while the corresponding figures for diffuse type carcinoma were 29/48 (60%) and 17/38 (45%) respectively. Tumour histology therefore had no influence on the occurrence of H pylori. Tumour site had no effect on the presence or absence of gastritis, atrophic changes, intestinal metaplasia, or H pylori. While both H pylori and gastritis are associated with gastric cancer, the association is unrelated to tumour histology and may not be a causal one.