Health. Stomach cancer: soon to be 16 million new cases, screening is urgently needed

Worldwide, according to figures from the Pasteur Institute, 1.1 million cases of stomach cancer are diagnosed. This figure could skyrocket, according to projections from the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

A new study by the IARC, published Monday, July 7 in Nature Medicine , estimated the number of gastric cancers in people born between 2008 and 2017. Assuming control measures do not change, 15.6 million cases of gastric cancers will occur in this population group across the world.

To achieve this result, the researchers analyzed data from 185 countries, combining national age-specific incidence rates from Globocan 2022 (an IARC project aimed at providing regular estimates of the incidence, mortality, and future burden of the 28 major cancers in 184 countries) with cohort-specific mortality rates.

68% of the total number of cases is expected to be recorded in Asia, 13% in the Americas, 11% in Africa, 8% in Europe and only 0.4% in Oceania.

Partly due to demographic changes, the number of stomach cancer cases is expected to explode in areas where it is currently low. Particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where the number of future cases could be up to six times higher than the estimated number for 2022.

According to the IARC, more than 75% of these cancers will be attributable to the bacteria Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) , one of the main causes of stomach cancer.

"H. pylori stomach infection is acquired during childhood and persists for decades, or even lifelong if left untreated. The infected person develops a strong local and humoral inflammatory response, which gradually becomes chronic," specifies the Pasteur Institute. In most individuals, chronic gastritis progresses without consequences and may be asymptomatic. 10% of infected people will develop ulcer disease and 1% stomach cancer or gastric cancer

H. Pylori is currently recognized as the first bacterium directly implicated in the genesis of cancer. The bacterium, often linked to poor water sanitation, is transmitted between humans orally or through bodily fluids. The infection is acquired during infancy and is most often transmitted within families.

This bacteria is estimated to be responsible for 8 million cases in Asia, 1.5 million in the Americas, and 1.4 million in Africa. However, these cancers are preventable thanks to screening programs and treatments for the infection. H. Pylori. However, IARC regrets that although gastric cancer has a poor prognosis and is preventable, it is the subject of limited investment worldwide.

"As demographic changes are expected to increase the burden of gastric cancer in many parts of the world, there is an urgent need to implement coordinated prevention strategies and prepare regional health systems to manage this growing burden," says Dr. Jin Young Park, head of the IARC Gastric Cancer Prevention Team and co-author of the new study.

Gastric cancer is largely preventable, and effective prevention policies could help save millions of lives. "It is essential that health authorities make gastric cancer prevention a priority and accelerate efforts to combat this scourge by planning pilot and feasibility projects, including H. pylori screening and treatment programs,"

Note : according to the Pasteur Institute, "H. pylori infection is one of the most widespread chronic infections in the world: 20 to 90% of adults are infected depending on the country. For a given country, the prevalence varies according to the socioeconomic status of individuals, the degree of promiscuity and the sanitary conditions in which they live."

Sources: IARC, Pasteur Institute