title: The gastric precancerous cascade.
abstract: Invasive gastric carcinoma is preceded by a cascade of precancerous lesions. The first recognized histologic change is active chronic inflammation, which may persist as such: non-atrophic chronic gastritis (no gland loss), or advance to multifocal atrophic gastritis (MAG), the first real step in the precancerous cascade. The following steps are: intestinal metaplasia (first "complete" and then "incomplete"); dysplasia, first low grade and then high grade (equivalent to "carcinoma in situ"). The following step is invasive carcinoma, which is thought to be associated with degradation of the intercellular matrix.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee 37232-0252, USA. pelayo.correa@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Pelayo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Correa
authors.forename: M Blanca
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Piazuelo
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D018450:Disease Progression; D005756:Gastritis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D011230:Precancerous Conditions / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers