Eat three meals a week? Beware of cancer caused by this "feeding"

Review expert: Peng Guoqiu, deputy chief physician of the Fourth Medical Center of the General Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army

18-year-old gastric cancer patient

I used to eat barbecue three times a week.

28-year-old woman had subtotal gastrectomy due to gastric cancer

24-year-old designer suffers from advanced gastric cancer

Asking “Why me?”

Topics such as "Gastric cancer is getting younger" and "Gastric cancer has no symptoms in the early stages"

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So, how can young people protect their stomach?

How to screen in the early stages when there are no symptoms?

Today, let’s talk about

Cancer caused by “feeding” – stomach cancer!

1. Gastric cancer is getting younger

In recent years, the incidence of gastric cancer among young people has been increasing, and it has become an upward trend that cannot be ignored worldwide.

The latest data released by the National Cancer Center show that the annual incidence of gastric cancer in the country exceeds 350,000, ranking fifth among all malignant tumors; the number of deaths exceeds 260,000, ranking third among malignant tumors.

At the same time, experts said that although the high-risk age for gastric cancer in my country is concentrated in people over 45 years old, in recent years, many young people have been diagnosed with gastric cancer, which should arouse vigilance and attention. It is understood that gastric cancer patients in my country account for about 40% of the world's total.

2. Three barbecues a week can lead to Helicobacter pylori

The youngest gastric cancer patient treated by Professor Qin Jichao, director of the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, was only 18 years old. One patient suffered from poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, a malignant tumor that is prone to recurrence and metastasis.

According to Tan Jichao, director of the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, this patient has a characteristic: if he eats barbecued, pickled and smoked foods for a long time, his incidence of gastric cancer will increase.

Doctors discovered during the diagnosis and treatment that this young stomach cancer patient usually ate barbecue three times a week. The patient has been discharged from the hospital after having two-thirds of his stomach removed in a minimally invasive surgery.

3. Helicobacter pylori

The mortality rate of gastric cancer ranks among the top three of all cancers. Experts say that most of the confirmed cases of gastric cancer are patients infected with Helicobacter pylori, and Helicobacter pylori can be transmitted among people.

So, why does eating barbecue lead to infection with Helicobacter pylori? And how does it develop into gastric cancer?

1. What is Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori is a pathogenic bacterium that can parasitize the human stomach. It is closely related to the occurrence of diseases such as gastric ulcers, gastritis and even gastric cancer, and its harm should not be underestimated. In 2022, the United States released a new version of the carcinogen list, and Helicobacter pylori was listed as a clear carcinogen. The infection rate in China is nearly 60%.

After being infected with Helicobacter pylori, most people do not have obvious symptoms, but some people will suffer from chronic gastritis and peptic ulcer, with symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, acid reflux, and belching. If left untreated, a small number of patients will slowly develop gastric malignant tumors.

2. Barbecue and Helicobacter pylori

In fact, it is well known that barbecue can induce cancer. During the barbecue process, smoke containing benzopyrene will be produced, which will then adhere to the food. The World Health Organization has classified benzopyrene as a Class 1 carcinogen, which clearly shows that it has a carcinogenic effect on the human body. In addition, the protein component of meat is easy to produce heterocyclic amines with sugars at high temperatures. In addition, meat, vegetables or seafood generally need to be marinated before grilling. If the marinating time is too long, it is easy to produce carcinogens-nitrosamines, which are one of the main causes of cancers such as esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, and intestinal cancer.

Among the above carcinogenic factors, it seems to have nothing to do with Helicobacter pylori, but if you eat barbecue often, it will add a great burden to the stomach, seriously affecting the digestion and absorption function of the stomach and intestines, irritating the gastric mucosa, and destroying the gastric mucosal barrier. This will lead to the growth of a large number of Helicobacter pylori. If the patient already has gastrointestinal discomfort, it will aggravate the symptoms, making Helicobacter pylori more difficult to cure.

3. Avoid infection with Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori infection is mostly due to "diseases entering the body through the mouth".

Implementing a separate dining system at home is the best way to block Helicobacter pylori from entering the body through the mouth.

Do not eat raw food or too hot food. If you do not eat too hot food, especially hot pot, barbecue, alcohol and spicy food, you can protect the gastric mucosa and enhance its resistance, then the invasion conditions of Helicobacter pylori will be weakened a lot. In addition, the ingredients must be cleaned before cooking, do not drink untreated water, and try not to eat raw food.

Wash your hands and mouth in time. Pay attention to hygiene and wash your hands frequently, especially before meals and after defecation.

Regular check-ups for high-risk groups. It is recommended that high-risk groups who are susceptible to infection undergo gastroscopy every 2-3 years. Adults under 50 years old should undergo gastroscopy every 3 years; those over 50 years old should undergo gastroscopy every 2 years.

4. What to do if there are no symptoms in the early stages?

During the interview, the reporter learned that many patients with stomach discomfort, once diagnosed with gastric cancer, are almost all in the middle or late stages. Experts emphasize that gastric cancer has no symptoms in the early stages, and screening is the key.

Experts say that the main reason why gastric cancer is difficult to detect is that there are no symptoms in the early stages. When symptoms do occur, they are usually in the middle or late stages. So if you want to detect gastric cancer early, the most important thing is screening.

In addition, experts also introduced that according to the latest national guidelines for early screening of gastric cancer, people with high-risk factors, such as family history of gastric cancer and high-risk groups of Helicobacter pylori infection, are recommended to undergo gastroscopy once a year.

At present, the overall detection rate of early gastric cancer in my country is relatively low. In some large cities, as people's awareness of screening increases, the early detection rate has increased. If stomach pain, acid reflux, stomach acid, bloating and other discomfort symptoms last for a long time, it may be a sign of the transformation of stomach disease into gastric cancer. Do not diagnose or buy medicine on your own. You should see a doctor in time to rule out the possibility of cancer. Early diagnosis and early treatment have a five-year cure rate of more than 90% for early gastric cancer.