DL-957: A Bacterial Carcinogen – H. pylori, 2 CE

Lucy Treagan, Ph.D. - Prof. Biol. Emerita - University of San Francisco - San Francisco, CA Approved for 2.0 CE Level of Difficulty: Intermediate CAMLT is approved by the California Department of Public Health as a CA CLS Accrediting Agency (#21) Infection with Helicobacter pylori is one of the most common bacterial infections of humans. The infection is generally acquired early in life and has a particularly high incidence in countries with poor hygiene conditions. The bacterium colonizes the gastric mucosa leading to a life-long infection. A minority of infected individuals develop serious gastrointestinal diseases: chronic gastritis, gastroduodenal ulcers, adenocarcinoma, and lymphoma. Extensive seroepidemiologic studies have shown an increased risk of gastric cancer in persons infected with H. pylori. Based on such studies the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified H. pylori as a type I carcinogen in 1994 (1). The association of H. pylori with the development of gastric and duodenal ulcers has had a profound impact on the diagnosis and treatment of upper gastroduodenal diseases; gastric ulcer is now regarded an infectious disease that can be controlled with antibiotic treatment.