title: Gastric carcinoid in a patient infected with Helicobacter pylori: a new entity?
abstract: There are four types of gastric carcinoid tumors, classified according to their histology and malignant potential. Only a few cases of carcinoid tumors in patients infected with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) have been reported so far. We report a patient infected with H. pylori presenting with a small solitary gastric carcinoid tumor with very low proliferative rate and normal gastrin levels. The tumor was endoscopically removed and the patient received an eradication therapy against H. pylori. No signs of metastatic disease have been found so far during more than 3 year of follow-up. Infection with H. pylori may cause chronic gastritis with normal or elevated gastrin levels, leading to the development of gastric carcinoids by mechanisms unrelated to gastrin. Enterochromaffin-like cell tumors related to a chronic H. pylori infection may be considered as a distinct type of gastric carcinoid tumors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Sciences, Division of Endocrine Oncology, University Hospital of Uppsala, Uppsala 75900, Sweden. pantelis.antonodimitrakis@akademiska.se
authors.forename: Pantelis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Antonodimitrakis
authors.forename: Apostolos
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsolakis
authors.forename: Staffan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Welin
authors.forename: Gordana
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kozlovacki
authors.forename: Kjell
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Oberg
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Granberg
mesh_terms: D002276:Carcinoid Tumor / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology