The Peruvian Contribution to the Knowledge of the Role of Helicobacter pylori Infection in the Genesis of Gastric Premalignant Lesions That Predispose to Gastric Cancer

Abstract

This document highlights the contribution of Peruvian researchers to the scientific understanding of the role of Helicobacter pylori infection in the development of premalignant gastric lesions associated with gastric cancer. The authors summarize a series of studies conducted since the 1980s that demonstrated the relationship between H. pylori infection, chronic gastritis, gastric atrophy, intestinal metaplasia, and gastric mucosal dysplasia, all of which are recognized precursor stages of intestinal-type gastric cancer. The article also emphasizes pioneering contributions that demonstrated the regression of dysplastic lesions following treatment of the infection and proposed that the eradication of H. pylori could play a key role in the prevention of gastric cancer.