Stomach Cancer Epidemiology

Researchers have studied the epidemiology of cancer for centuries. Gastric or stomach cancer is a cancer that can start in different sections of the stomach. Different countries and regions have all shown fluctuating rates for stomach cancer during the past century. Until the late 1930s, stomach cancer was the leading cause of cancer death in the United States. The incidence rates have decreased by 1.7% for men and 0.8% for women annually from 1992 to 2010 (American Cancer Society). Still today, incidence rates are at their highest in other countries such as East Asia, East Europe and South America. There are many demographic and environmental factors such as smoking, H. Pylori infection, older age and family history which affect these growing rates. This paper will discuss how the rates of stomach cancer have changed over the past century and why specific countries are at high risk.
The second most common form of cancer in Asia is gastric cancer. Countries such as Japan and Korea have the highest rates of stomach cancer in the world. This disease dominates in Eastern Asia, for stomach cancer leads in less developed countries, based on socioeconomic status and technological development. Carcinogens such as H Pylori, tobacco, alcohol use, and even high salt intake in these areas causes the …show more content…
The prevalence of the cancer has been from development of the H Pylori infection that has affected lives since from a young age of 6 months to 40 years of age. Studies were done to see the prevalence of Helicobacter Pylori in new born babies. Such studies have shown that about 71% of cases were infected at the time and over two years it decreased significantly. The study also reflected that the percentage of males infected dropped (66%-55%) and female dropped (80%-33%). The cases later expressed the possibility of developing gastric cancer (Klein