Most people may panic when they hear about precancerous lesions, which literally means that precancerous lesions are followed by cancer. In fact, precancerous lesion does not mean that it is bound to develop into cancer, but the possibility of malignant change of the lesion increases, and it does not mean that all cancers have to go through the stage of precancerous lesion. The following is to give you some knowledge about this. What is precancerous lesion? The occurrence of malignant tumor is a gradual evolutionary process. Some benign lesions in some organs of human body are prone to abnormal cell proliferation with the tendency of malignant changes, and these abnormal proliferating lesions with the tendency of cancerous changes are called precancerous lesions. Precancerous lesions are a special stage before the occurrence of malignant tumors, and not all precancerous lesions will become malignant tumors. And precancerous lesions are also divided into different stages such as mild, moderate and severe. What is precancerous disease Precancerous lesions are often secondary to certain chronic diseases. People with these diseases have a much higher chance of getting cancer than others, and thus these diseases are called pre-cancerous diseases or pre-cancerous states. Precancerous disease is a clinical concept, a category of disease that includes abnormal changes in etiology and pathology, clinical symptoms, signs, and ancillary tests. Relationship between precancerous diseases and precancerous lesions In fact, the process of cellular carcinogenesis develops in stages and evolves gradually. It usually takes more than 10 years or even longer from the attack of oncogenic factors on normal tissue cells to the production of cancer. Of course, there are also those who progress rapidly and have a shorter course of disease. During this long process, precancerous diseases develop into cancer through precancerous lesions. Precancerous disease refers to a clinical condition with an increased risk of cancer, which can occur in the process of development of some kind of lesions with cancer potential – precancerous lesions, for example, chronic atrophic gastritis is not a precancerous lesion, but its gastric mucosal epithelium can appear abnormal hyperplasia, the latter is called precancerous lesion, the former is called precancerous disease, what are the precancerous diseases of gastric cancer precancerous diseases of gastric cancer The pre-cancerous diseases of stomach mainly include chronic atrophic gastritis, gastric ulcer, gastric polyp, residual stomach, etc. These diseases may occur in the process of gastric mucosa intestinal epithelial chemosis or heterogeneous hyperplasia (also called intraepithelial neoplasia), which may further evolve into cancer. Chronic atrophic gastritis: According to the population survey in areas with high incidence of gastric cancer in China, there is a positive correlation between the mortality rate of gastric cancer and the prevalence level of chronic atrophic gastritis. The more severe the degree of chronic atrophic gastritis in high prevalence areas, the higher the detection rate of intestinal epithelial metaplasia. Domestic data show that the incidence of gastric cancer in chronic atrophic gastritis is 4-7.1%, while foreign data report it to be 8.6-10%. Gastric ulcer: When gastric ulcer is repeatedly attacked, the gastric mucosa is repeatedly broken and stimulated, it may become malignant and gastric cancer may occur. The malignant rate is about 2~5% Gastric polyps: the cancer rate of gastric polyps is greatly related to the presence or absence of atypical hyperplasia. Adenomatous polyps have different degrees of atypical hyperplasia, the cancer rate of tubular adenoma is about 10%, the cancer rate of villous adenoma, also known as papillary adenoma, is as high as 50% to 70%, and mixed adenoma is between the two. In contrast, proliferative polyps are prolonged glandular hyperplasia, and most of them do not have atypical hyperplasia, and the cancer rate is only 0.4%. Residual stomach: As a precancerous state, the relationship between residual stomach and gastric cancer has also been emphasized. It is generally believed that cancer occurs in the remnant stomach more than 10 years after a major gastrectomy for benign lesions. The incidence of gastric cancer in patients with residual stomach is 2 to 12 times higher than that in healthy people. What is precancerous lesion of gastric cancer? Precancerous lesion of gastric cancer refers to: atrophy of gastric mucosa, intestinal epithelial metaplasia, and heterotypic hyperplasia. Heterogeneous hyperplasia is the precursor step of gastric cancer, and according to the degree of cell heterogeneity, it is divided into mild, moderate and severe. mild to moderate heterogeneous hyperplasia is called low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, and severe heterogeneous hyperplasia is called high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, which is sometimes difficult to distinguish from well-differentiated early gastric cancer. 10-year cancer rate: mild heterogeneous hyperplasia 25%~11%, moderate heterogeneous hyperplasia 14%~35%, severe heterogeneous hyperplasia 10%~83%. 83%. Intestinal epithelial metaplasia, or simply intestinal metaplasia, refers to the presence of intestinal glands or intestinal-type epithelium in the gastric mucosa. Intestinal metaplasia is a relatively common lesion in gastritis? Almost always seen in chronic atrophic gastritis, the appearance of intestinal metaplasia is associated with damage to the gastric mucosa and the inability to fully regenerate and repair it. It is now believed that only a portion of intestinal metaplasia is a precancerous lesion of gastric cancer. How precancerous diseases and precancerous lesions of gastric cancer develop into gastric cancer As a precancerous disease, chronic atrophic gastritis can further develop abnormal proliferation of intestinal epithelium and become cancerous, and the cancer rate is related to the length and severity of its disease history. It is generally believed that the process of chronic gastritis developing into gastric cancer is: chronic superficial gastritis – chronic atrophic gastritis – intestinal epithelial hyperplasia – atypical hyperplasia – gastric cancer. After being diagnosed with precancerous diseases, many patients are burdened with heavy thoughts and worried all day long for fear of cancer, which is totally unnecessary. After all, precancerous disease of gastric cancer is not equal to gastric cancer, which are two different pathological processes. Most patients with atrophic gastritis can be transformed into superficial gastritis or maintain the status quo after reasonable and systematic treatment, while only a small percentage of severe atrophic gastritis can become cancerous after a long time, mainly in cases with moderate or above atypical hyperplasia and intestinal epithelial hyperplasia. How to prevent the development of precancerous lesions Although not all precancerous lesions can develop into gastric cancer, from the perspective of prevention and early detection of gastric cancer, such lesions should be treated seriously. First of all, patients who already have the above precancerous diseases should have regular medical checkups. Gastroscopy is an important tool for secondary prevention of gastric cancer, generally once a year and once every six months for severe cases. Pathological examination must be sent during gastroscopy, and special attention should be paid to atypical hyperplasia. For severe or suspected cancerous heterogeneous hyperplasia, endoscopic treatment or surgical resection should be used as treatment. Patients with severe heterogeneous hyperplasia who do not want to receive the above treatment can be followed up and reviewed quarterly or semiannually if conditions permit, and should be treated promptly if malignant transformation is suspected. For moderate heterogeneous hyperplasia, chemical drugs that promote epithelial cell differentiation can be used, along with regular review. In the case of mild heterogeneous hyperplasia, no treatment is given and temporary observation is performed. Secondly, enhancing the treatment of chronic atrophic gastritis and other diseases is also an important measure to prevent gastric cancer. Recent studies have confirmed that the removal of H. pylori infection in the stomach can reduce the risk of precancerous lesions and gastric cancer by 40%. Finally, life and dietary regimen is also important. In life, we should relax, reduce worries, avoid excessive alcohol consumption and smoking. Eat regularly, chew slowly, eat more vegetables and high-fiber foods, and eat less fried, pan-fried, cold, spicy, high-fat and high-protein foods.