| Theme |
Up‒to‒date of the Protection of Gastroenterological Cancers |
| Title |
Salt and Gastric Cancer |
| Author |
Takeshi Toyoda |
Division of Pathology, National Institute of Health Sciences |
| Author |
Tetsuya Tsukamoto |
Department of Diagnostic Pathology I, Fujita Health University School of Medicine |
| Author |
Kumiko Ogawa |
Division of Pathology, National Institute of Health Sciences |
| Author |
Masae Tatematsu |
Japan Bioassay Research Center |
| [ Summary ] |
Epidemiological studies have shown that excessive salt intake is an important risk factor for gastric cancer in humans. We previously demonstrated that a high‒salt diet promotes Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) ‒associated stomach carcinogenesis in Mongolian gerbils in a dose‒dependent manner. Our results also suggest that salt acts as a co‒promoter of gastric carcinogenesis in combination with H. pylori, because the promotion effect of salt alone was relatively weak. Excessive salt intake is considered to promote H. pylori colonization through disturbance of the microenvironment in the surface mucous gel layer of the gastric mucosa. We have shown that the combination of H. pylori infection and high‒salt diet can induce significant changes of gene expression profiles in the gastric mucosa, including increased expression of inflammation‒related enzymes such as cyclooxygenase‒2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase. Taken together, reduction of salt intake is important for patients with H. pylori infection to prevent stomach cancers. |