Current status and prospects of gastric X-ray examination

Abstract

Gastric X-ray examination has been used as a major clinical inspection method for gastric cancer screening. An X-ray image has the advantage of being capable of not only clearly depicting the morphology of a gastric cancer lesion but also of widely showing the properties of the background mucosa. A diagnostic method for early gastric cancer that incorporates this characteristic is the "gastric cancer triangle. " The triangle of gastric cancer is obtained by classifying the background mucosa of gastric cancer into either fundic glands or intestinal metaplasia, histopathological type into either undifferentiated or differentiated type, and macroscopic type into either depressed or protruded type. The three elements are associated with each other. This diagnostic theory improves the accuracy of clinical diagnosis of gastric cancer. In addition, if the Helicobacter pylori infection status is determined by evaluating the degree of chronic active gastritis and atrophy based on the findings of X-ray imaging, it is possible to predict individual patients' risk of gastric cancer. In this article, the author reviewed the current status of gastric X-ray examination from the viewpoint of cancer screening and reported on advanced research that incorporated the computer technology of machine learning.