[Comparison of gastric mucosal lesions in high and low incidence areas of gastric cancer--analysis of 3146 operated gastric specimens and 112 autopsied samples. National Gastric Cancer Pathology Cooperative Group].

Gastric mucosal lesions, including 3146 gastric specimens resected for various benign diseases and 112 autopsied samples, in both high and low incidence areas of gastric cancer in China were analysed and compared. The results showed that, in high and low incidence areas of gastric cancer, the detection rate was 59.96% and 52.02% for chronic atrophic gastritis, 60.60% and 52.76% for intestinal metaplasia, 37.60% and 22.97% for atypical hyperplasia, 0.44% and 0.13% for microcarcinoma and small carcinoma of the stomach, 2.52% and 0.79% for gastric polyp. The data suggest that a positive correlation be present between the gastric mucosal lesions and gastric cancer. Prevalence of the gastric mucosal lesions in an area may be regarded as an indication of incidence of the gastric cancer. Microcarcinoma and small carcinoma of the stomach were 0.44% of the gastric specimens resected for benign diseases in high incidence area of gastric cancer, which indicates that more tissue sections will have to be taken for examination in order to avoid missing the early carcinoma.