[A new approach for extermination of gastric cancer from Japan]

A gastric cancer elimination project that combines H. pylori eradication therapy and endoscopic examination is both appropriate and feasible for Japan, where excellent methods of diagnosis and endoscopic treatment for early gastric cancer are already available. In this country, the baby-boom generation is now passing 60 years old and reaching the cancer-prone age, so an increase of medical costs related to gastric cancer is impending. Application for medical insurance in patients with H. pylori related chronic gastritis due to the Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs might be a first step to eliminate gastric cancer deaths in Japan.