The prevalence and significance of circulating antibodies to gastric intrinsic factor and parietal cells in gastric carcinoma.

The prevalence of circulating antibodies to gastric intrinsic factor and parietal cells was examined in 60 patients with histologically proven gastric carcinoma and was found not to differ from the prevalence of these antibodies in control subjects of similar age and sex distribution.Amongst the 60 patients with gastric carcinoma seven were thought to have actual or potential pernicious anaemia. The absence of an increased prevalence of antigastric antibodies in gastric carcinoma indicates that gastritis itself, whether autoimmune or not, is the likely common denominator underlying the predisposition to gastric carcinoma in both pernicious anaemia and chronic atrophic gastritis.