Abstract

Gastric carcinoma is nowadays one of the main causes of mortality worldwide due to neoplasms and especially in countries such as Costa Rica, which is classified as a high incidence country. There are multiple risk factors, starting with Helicobacter pylori infection being the most important one; after the infection a cascade with different lesions is triggered, first it begins with gastric atrophy and then eventually lead to an invasive cancer. There are other factors that can influence a pro-carcinogenic environment such as smoking, obesity, diet, among others. Multiple nations have developed different screening guidelines to reduce mortality, however in countries with high incidence it is still the gold-standard to perform imaging and endoscopy studies after a certain age and depending on risk factors.

Key words: Stomach neoplasms; helicobacter pylori; gastritis; atrophic; metaplasia; endoscopy; gastrointestinal