Gastric cancer (GC) occupies the first few places in the world among tumors in terms of incidence and mortality, causing serious harm to human health, and at the same time, its treatment greatly consumes the health care resources of all countries in the world. The diagnosis of GC is usually based on histopathologic examination, and it is very important to be able to detect and identify cancerous lesions at an early stage, but some endoscopists' lack of diagnostic experience and fatigue at work lead to a certain rate of under diagnosis. The rapid and striking development of Artificial intelligence (AI) has helped to enhance the ability to extract abnormal information from endoscopic images to some extent, and more and more researchers are applying AI technology to the diagnosis of GC. This initiative has not only improved the detection rate of early gastric cancer (EGC), but also significantly improved the survival rate of patients after treatment. This article reviews the results of various AI-assisted diagnoses of EGC in recent years, including the identification of EGC, the determination of differentiation type and invasion depth, and the identification of borders. Although AI has a better application prospect in the early diagnosis of ECG, there are still major challenges, and the prospects and limitations of AI application need to be further discussed.

We aimed to evaluate the consistency between endoscopic grading of gastric intestinal metaplasia (EGGIM) and the operative link on gastric intestinal metaplasia assessment (OLGIM) staging, as well as the value of endoscopic grading of gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM) in early gastric cancer (EGC) risk.

The sample size was estimated to be at least 210 patients. To evaluate GIM, EGGIM staging was used during magnifying endoscopy with narrow-band imaging, while the OLGIM staging was carried out according to the updated Sydney system. The consistency between the two scoring systems and the accuracy of EGGIM in diagnosing OLGIM III/IV cases were evaluated. EGC risk was evaluated using the Kimura-Takemoto classification, the operative link on gastritis assessment (OLGA)/OLGIM, and EGGIM.

Among the 210 patients, 68 (32.4%) had (previous) EGC and 142 (67.6%) had chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG). EGGIM and OLGIM staging showed good consistency (κ = 0.805, U = 12.620, p < 0.001) in diagnosing OLGIM III/IV GIM, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for EGGIM of 0.95. Using a cut-off value of > 4, the sensitivity and specificity were 95.7% and 91.4%, respectively. The EGGIM score was higher in the EGC group than in the CAG group (4.93 vs. 3.92, p < 0.001).

EGGIM shows good diagnostic performance and consistency with OLGIM, which can simplify endoscopic surveillance by reducing the need for biopsy. The EGGIM score is associated with EGC risk, and endoscopic surveillance is recommended for patients with EGGIM score > 4.

Intestinal metaplasia (IM) is a significant gastric mucosal change that warrants attention due to its potential role in the pathogenesis of gastric cancer. IM is often triggered by Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and some risk factors.

This study examined H. pylori infection and related risk factors in 7,096 participants, identifying 2,200 cases of IM linked to H. pylori and 4,896 controls without the infection in Wuwei, Gansu Province, China. The Operative Link on Gastritis/Intestinal Metaplasia (OLGIM) and (Operative Link on Gastritis Assessment (OLGA) classifications tools were used for identifying participants at high risk for gastric cancer by evaluating the severity and extent of H. pylori infection and IM.

The study found that IM and H. pylori prevalence were gender-related, with males representing 41.09 % of cases compared to 33.92 % of controls, a significant difference (P < 0.0001). Conversely, females were more prevalent in the control group (66.07 %) compared to the case group (58.91 %). Age analysis showed higher proportions of IM cases in the 40-49 years group (46.95 %) compared to controls (43.40 %), with significant differences across age groups (P < 0.0001). IM showed significant positive correlations with smoking , alcohol consumption , and drinking water sources . H. pylori infection was detected in 238 (10.81 %) of the case group and 542 (11.07 %) of the control group. Using the OLGIM classification, which incorporates IM into gastric cancer risk assessment, stage 0 (no IM) was observed in 1,189 (24.28 %) of the control group and 530 (24.09 %) of the case group. Stage 1 (mild IM) was found in 3,165 (64.62 %) of the controls and 1,432 (65.09 %) of the cases. Stage 2 (moderate IM) was present in 520 (10.62 %) of the controls and 220 (10 %) of the cases, while stage 3 (severe IM) was observed in 24 (0.49 %) of the controls and 18 (0.82 %) of the cases. For OLGA staging, the case group had a higher percentage of individuals in higher stages (III and IV) compared to the control group. Specifically, 50.84 % of the cases were classified as stage 0, 19.75 % , stage I, 14.71 %, stage II, 8.40 %, stage III, and IV, 6.30 %. In the control group, 54.43 % were classified as stage 0, 24.17 %, stage I, 18.45 %, stage II, 1.66 %, stage III, and IV, 1.29 % respectively.

These findings suggest that older individuals, males, smokers, drinkers, and those using certain drinking water sources are more likely to develop IM. The study highlights the combined impact of H. pylori and risk factors on IM development, emphasizing the need for comprehensive public health strategies to address these risks. The higher proportion of advanced OLGA stages in the case group suggests more severe gastric atrophy, potentially indicating a higher risk for gastric cancer development.

Gastric cancer is the second commonest gastrointestinal (GI) neoplasm, with a high mortality rate and highly variable regional incidence data associated with factors such as diet, genetics, and infection with Helicobacter pylori. In high-risk countries as Japan and South Korea endoscopic screening has shown its potential to reduce this cancer's mortality. However, in low-risk countries such as Spain, where population screening is not cost-effective, a selective approach is advised focused on high-risk groups, including patients with a family history of gastric cancer, or in the form of opportunistic screening during gastroscopy for other clinical indications. High-quality gastroscopy is key for the identification of early lesions. This includes using high-definition endoscopes with chromoendoscopy, pursuing optimal mucosal visibility with washes or premedication, systematically inspecting all of the mucosa, investing adequate observation times, and using risk stratification tools such as EGGIM or OLGIM. Endoscopic surveillance is particularly advisable for high-risk precursor lesions, with intervals adjusted for patient profile. Further research is crucial for optimizing these interventions and reducing the condition's mortality rate.

At a population level, the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE), the European Helicobacter and Microbiota Study Group (EHMSG), and the European Society of Pathology (ESP) suggest endoscopic screening for gastric cancer (and precancerous conditions) in high-risk regions (age-standardized rate [ASR] > 20 per 100 000 person-years) every 2 to 3 years or, if cost-effectiveness has been proven, in intermediate risk regions (ASR 10-20 per 100 000 person-years) every 5 years, but not in low-risk regions (ASR < 10).ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that irrespective of country of origin, individual gastric risk assessment and stratification of precancerous conditions is recommended for first-time gastroscopy. ESGE/EHMSG/ESP suggest that gastric cancer screening or surveillance in asymptomatic individuals over 80 should be discontinued or not started, and that patients' comorbidities should be considered when treatment of superficial lesions is planned.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that a high quality endoscopy including the use of virtual chromoendoscopy (VCE), after proper training, is performed for screening, diagnosis, and staging of precancerous conditions (atrophy and intestinal metaplasia) and lesions (dysplasia or cancer), as well as after endoscopic therapy. VCE should be used to guide the sampling site for biopsies in the case of suspected neoplastic lesions as well as to guide biopsies for diagnosis and staging of gastric precancerous conditions, with random biopsies to be taken in the absence of endoscopically suspected changes. When there is a suspected early gastric neoplastic lesion, it should be properly described (location, size, Paris classification, vascular and mucosal pattern), photodocumented, and two targeted biopsies taken.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP do not recommend routine performance of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or positron emission tomography (PET)-CT prior to endoscopic resection unless there are signs of deep submucosal invasion or if the lesion is not considered suitable for endoscopic resection.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for differentiated gastric lesions clinically staged as dysplastic (low grade and high grade) or as intramucosal carcinoma (of any size if not ulcerated or ≤ 30 mm if ulcerated), with EMR being an alternative for Paris 0-IIa lesions of size ≤ 10 mm with low likelihood of malignancy.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP suggest that a decision about ESD can be considered for malignant lesions clinically staged as having minimal submucosal invasion if differentiated and ≤ 30 mm; or for malignant lesions clinically staged as intramucosal, undifferentiated and ≤ 20 mm; and in both cases with no ulcerative findings.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommends patient management based on the following histological risk after endoscopic resection: Curative/very low-risk resection (lymph node metastasis [LNM] risk < 0.5 %-1 %): en bloc R0 resection; dysplastic/pT1a, differentiated lesion, no lymphovascular invasion, independent of size if no ulceration and ≤ 30 mm if ulcerated. No further staging procedure or treatment is recommended.Curative/low-risk resection (LNM risk < 3 %): en bloc R0 resection; lesion with no lymphovascular invasion and: a) pT1b, invasion ≤ 500 µm, differentiated, size ≤ 30 mm; or b) pT1a, undifferentiated, size ≤ 20 mm and no ulceration. Staging should be completed, and further treatment is generally not necessary, but a multidisciplinary discussion is required. Local-risk resection (very low risk of LNM but increased risk of local persistence/recurrence): Piecemeal resection or tumor-positive horizontal margin of a lesion otherwise meeting curative/very low-risk criteria (or meeting low-risk criteria provided that there is no submucosal invasive tumor at the resection margin in the case of piecemeal resection or tumor-positive horizontal margin for pT1b lesions [invasion ≤ 500 µm; well-differentiated; size ≤ 30 mm, and VM0]). Endoscopic surveillance/re-treatment is recommended rather than other additional treatment. High-risk resection (noncurative): Any lesion with any of the following: (a) a positive vertical margin (if carcinoma) or lymphovascular invasion or deep submucosal invasion (> 500 µm from the muscularis mucosae); (b) poorly differentiated lesions if ulceration or size > 20 mm; (c) pT1b differentiated lesions with submucosal invasion ≤ 500 µm with size > 30 mm; or (d) intramucosal ulcerative lesion with size > 30 mm. Complete staging and strong consideration for additional treatments (surgery) in multidisciplinary discussion.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP suggest the use of validated endoscopic classifications of atrophy (e. g. Kimura-Takemoto) or intestinal metaplasia (e. g. endoscopic grading of gastric intestinal metaplasia [EGGIM]) to endoscopically stage precancerous conditions and stratify the risk for gastric cancer.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that biopsies should be taken from at least two topographic sites (2 biopsies from the antrum/incisura and 2 from the corpus, guided by VCE) in two separate, clearly labeled vials. Additional biopsy from the incisura is optional.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that patients with extensive endoscopic changes (Kimura C3 + or EGGIM 5 +) or advanced histological stages of atrophic gastritis (severe atrophic changes or intestinal metaplasia, or changes in both antrum and corpus, operative link on gastritis assessment/operative link on gastric intestinal metaplasia [OLGA/OLGIM] III/IV) should be followed up with high quality endoscopy every 3 years, irrespective of the individual's country of origin.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that no surveillance is proposed for patients with mild to moderate atrophy or intestinal metaplasia restricted to the antrum, in the absence of endoscopic signs of extensive lesions or other risk factors (family history, incomplete intestinal metaplasia, persistent H. pylori infection). This group constitutes most individuals found in clinical practice.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend H. pylori eradication for patients with precancerous conditions and after endoscopic or surgical therapy.ESGE/EHMSG/ESP recommend that patients should be advised to stop smoking and low-dose daily aspirin use may be considered for the prevention of gastric cancer in selected individuals with high risk for cardiovascular events.

Detecting gastric precancerous lesions (GPLs) is critical for the early diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer. Endoscopy combined with tissue examination is an important method for detecting GPLs. However, negative biopsy results often increase patients' risks, economic burdens, and lead to additional healthcare costs. Improving the detection rate of GPLs and reducing the rate of negative biopsies is currently a key focus in endoscopic quality control.

To explore the relationships between the endoscopist biopsy rate (EBR), qualifications of endoscopists and endoscopic assistants, and detection rate of GPLs.

EBR, endoscopists, and endoscopic assistants were divided into four groups: Low, moderate, high, and very high levels. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the relationships between EBR and the qualifications of endoscopists with respect to the detection rate of positive lesions. Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses were used to evaluate the correlation between EBR, endoscopist or endoscopic assistant qualifications, and the detection rate of positive lesions.

Compared with those in the low EBR group, the odds ratio (OR) values for detecting positive lesions in the moderate, high, and very high EBR groups were 1.12 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.06-1.19, P < 0.001], 1.22 (95%CI: 1.14-1.31, P < 0.001), and 1.38 (95%CI: 1.29-1.47, P < 0.001), respectively. EBR was positively correlated with the detection rate of gastric precancerous conditions (atrophic gastritis/intestinal metaplasia) (ρ = 0.465, P = 0.004). In contrast, the qualifications of the endoscopists were positively correlated with GPLs detection (ρ = 0.448, P = 0.005). Compared to endoscopists with low qualification levels, those with moderate, high, and very high qualification levels endoscopists demonstrated increased detection rates of GPLs by 13% (OR = 1.13, 95%CI: 0.98-1.31), 20% (OR = 1.20, 95%CI: 1.03-1.39), and 32% (OR = 1.32, 95%CI: 1.15-1.52), respectively. Further analysis revealed that the qualifications of endoscopists were positively correlated with the detection rates of GPLs in the cardia (ρ = 0.350, P = 0.034), angularis (ρ = 0.396, P = 0.015) and gastric body (ρ = 0.453, P = 0.005) but not in the antrum (ρ = 0.292, P = 0.079). Moreover, the experience of endoscopic assistants was positively correlated with the detection rate of precancerous lesions by endoscopists with low or moderate qualifications (ρ = 0.427, P = 0.015).

Endoscopists and endoscopic assistants with high/very high qualifications, but not EBR, can improve the detection rate of GPLs. These results provide reliable evidence for the development of gastroscopic quality control indicators.

Chronic atrophic gastritis is an asymptomatic precancerous condition that can progress to extensive atrophy and/or intestinal metaplasia (IM), referred to as advanced stage of atrophic gastritis (ASAG). ASAG is a common condition with a variable prevalence worldwide reaching 45%. Narrow-band imaging (NBI) already has an established role in improving endoscopic detection of atrophy and IM. Considering the heterogeneous hospital population, this study aimed to assess the ASAG detection rate with NBI-guided biopsies compared with conventional Sydney protocol, in a European cosmopolitan city hospital.

This was a prospective, single-center, bi-phasic study conducted between October 2023 and March 2024, comparing ASAG detection rates using conventional Sydney protocol with optional NBI use, defined as phase 1, versus systematic NBI-guided biopsies in phase 2.

Of 495 eligible patients, 435 with similar demographics were included in both phases (87.8%). ASAG was detected in three patients using conventional Sydney protocol (1.43%) compared with eight patients (3.56%) using systematic NBI-guided biopsies ( P = 0.269). Furthermore, systematic NBI-guided biopsies were associated with increased detection rates for atrophy and IM ( P = 0.223 and P = 0.502, respectively). Suspicion-free NBI use correlated with increased likelihood of ASAG detection (odds ratio 16.99, 95% confidence interval 2.30-213.73). Age ≥ 50 years was a significant risk factor associated with ASAG.

Despite the diverse hospital population, ASAG prevalence remained low. A numerical increase in ASAG detection rate was observed with systematic NBI use compared with optional NBI use. Overall, systematic NBI-guided biopsies appear to be associated with increased rates of detection of ASAG, atrophy, and IM.

We aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the value of image-enhanced endoscopy including blue laser imaging (BLI), linked color imaging, narrow-band imaging (NBI), and texture and color enhancement imaging to detect and diagnose gastric cancer (GC) compared to that of white-light imaging (WLI).

Studies meeting the inclusion criteria were identified through PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Japan Medical Abstracts Society databases searches. The pooled risk ratio for dichotomous variables was calculated using the random-effects model to assess the GC detection between WLI and image-enhanced endoscopy. A random-effects model was used to calculate the overall diagnostic performance of WLI and magnifying image-enhanced endoscopy for GC.

Sixteen studies met the inclusion criteria. The detection rate of GC was significantly improved in linked color imaging compared with that in WLI (risk ratio, 2.20; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.39-3.25; p < 0.01) with mild heterogeneity. Magnifying endoscopy with NBI (ME-NBI) obtained a pooled sensitivity, specificity, and area under the summary receiver operating curve of 0.84 (95 % CI, 0.80-0.88), 0.96 (95 % CI, 0.94-0.97), and 0.92, respectively. Similarly, ME-BLI showed a pooled sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve of 0.81 (95 % CI, 0.77-0.85), 0.85 (95 % CI, 0.82-0.88), and 0.95, respectively. The diagnostic efficacy of ME-NBI/BLI for GC was evidently high compared to that of WLI, However, significant heterogeneity among the NBI studies still existed.

Our meta-analysis showed a high detection rate for linked color imaging and a high diagnostic performance of ME-NBI/BLI for GC compared to that with WLI.

 Mucosal visualization during upper gastrointestinal (UGI) endoscopy can be impaired by the presence of foam, bubbles, and mucus. Some UGI endoscopy visibility scales have been proposed but have not undergone multicenter validation. This study aimed to develop and validate the Gastroscopy RAte of Cleanliness Evaluation (GRACE) scale.

 A multicenter, international, cross-sectional study was conducted. The GRACE scale is based on a score from 0 (worst) to 3 (excellent) for esophagus, stomach, and duodenum, for a total ranging from 0 to 9. In phase 1, four expert endoscopists evaluated 60 images twice, with a 2-week interval between rounds; in phase 2, the same 60 images were scored twice by one expert and one nonexpert endoscopist from 27 endoscopy departments worldwide. For reproducibility assessment and real-time validation, the scale was applied to consecutive patients undergoing gastroscopy at each center.

 On internal validation, interobserver agreement was 0.81 (95 %CI 0.73-0.87) and 0.80 (95 %CI 0.72-0.86), with reliability of 0.73 (95 %CI 0.63-0.82) and 0.72 (95 %CI 0.63-0.81), in the two rounds, respectively. On external validation, overall interobserver agreement was 0.85 (95 %CI 0.82-0.88) and reliability was 0.79 (95 %CI 0.73-0.84). In real-time evaluation, the overall proportion of correct classifications was 0.80 (95 %CI 0.77-0.82).

 The GRACE scale showed good interobserver agreement, reliability, and validity. The widespread use of this scale could enhance quality and standardize the assessment of mucosal cleanliness during UGI endoscopy, pushing endoscopists to strive for excellent visibility and reducing the risk of missed lesions.

Gastric cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. In the United States, gastric cancer incidence and mortality are substantially higher among non-White racial and ethnic groups and new immigrants from high-incidence countries. This is in large part related to the higher prevalence of Helicobacter pylori -associated gastric premalignant changes in these populations. Apart from primary prevention, early detection of gastric cancer is the principal strategy to reduce gastric cancer mortality and improve survival. Extensive evidence in Asian countries has demonstrated the benefits of endoscopic screening in detecting early-stage gastric cancer and reducing gastric cancer-related mortality. By contrast, direct, high-quality US-based data, such as from large clinical trials or observational studies, on important outcomes of gastric cancer screening are still lacking. In this review, we evaluate and summarize the latest global evidence on the epidemiology and predisposing factors of gastric cancer as well as the efficacy, benefits vs. risks, and cost-effectiveness of gastric cancer screening. We further discuss the critical knowledge gaps and challenges in promoting gastric cancer screening in the United States. Dedicated research is urgently needed to enrich the US-based data on gastric cancer primary and secondary prevention to inform clinical practice and reduce gastric cancer-related morbidity and mortality in a cost and resource efficient manner.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a prevalent malignancy affecting the digestive system. We aimed to develop a risk prediction model based on endoscopic atrophy classification for GC.

We retrospectively collected the data from January 2020 to October 2021 in our hospital and randomly divided the patients into training and validation sets in an 8:2 ratio. We used multiple machine learning algorithms such as logistic regression (LR), Decision tree, Support Vector Machine, Random forest, and so on to establish the models. We employed the Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) to screen variables for the LR model. However, we chose all the variables to construct the models for other machine learning algorithms. All models were evaluated using the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), predictive histograms, and decision curve analysis (DCA).

A total of 1156 patients were selected for the analysis. Five variables, including age, sex, family history of GC, HP infection status, and Kimura-Takemoto Classification (KTC), were screened using LASSO analysis. The area under the curve (AUC) of all the machine learning models ranged from 0.762 to 0.974 in the training set and from 0.608 to 0.812 in the validation set. Among them, the LR model exhibited the highest AUC value (0.812, 95%CI: 0.737-0.887) in the validation set with good calibration and clinical applicability. Finally, we constructed a nomogram to demonstrate the LR model.

We established a nomogram based on endoscopic atrophy classification for GC, which might be valuable in predicting GC risk and assisting clinical decision-making.

Although chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG), intestinal metaplasia (IM), and dysplasia constitute gastric pre-neoplastic conditions of gastric cancer (GC), data on endoscopic correlation and the prevalence in many South American countries are scarce. The aims of this study were to establish prevalence and perform endoscopic-histological correlation of gastric pre-neoplastic conditions using high-definition white light endoscopy (WLE) and to determine interobserver agreement for endoscopic findings for CAG and IM.

A prospective, observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out at a Uruguayan hospital during a 6-month period. Risk was stratified according to Operative Link for Gastritis Assessment and Operative Link for Gastric Intestinal Metaplasia stage for CAG and IM, respectively. An independent and blinded second observer was included to determine interobserver endoscopic and histologic agreement.

A total of 102 patients (mean age 57 years ± 1.6 years, 68.6% woman) were included. Prevalence of histological CAG and IM were 38.2% and IM 31.4%, respectively. Endoscopic-histological correlation for CAG had kappa index 0.063, sensitivity 46%, and specificity 60%. For endoscopic IM, the kappa index was 0.216, sensitivity 22%, and specificity 96%. Interobserver variability was good for gastric fold flattening and very good in the presence of whitish-greyish plaques for CAG and IM, respectively.

The endoscopic-histological correlation of both CAG and IM was low, raising the need for biopsy for diagnosis in all cases, regardless of HD-WLE findings. Although prevalence of gastric pre-neoplastic conditions in this group of Uruguayan patients was comparable to those described in countries with a high incidence of GC, a low proportion of high-risk stages (III and IV) was identified.

Endoscopic examination plays a crucial role in the diagnosis of upper gastrointestinal (UGI) tract diseases. Despite advancements in endoscopic imaging, the detection of subtle early cancers and premalignant lesions using white-light imaging alone remains challenging. This review discusses two novel image-enhanced endoscopy (IEE) techniques-texture and color enhancement imaging (TXI) and red dichromatic imaging (RDI)-and their potential applications in UGI diseases. TXI enhances texture, brightness, and color tone, which improves the visibility of mucosal irregularities and facilitates earlier detection of neoplastic lesions. Studies have suggested that TXI enhances the color differences between lesions and the surrounding mucosa and improves the visibility of the lesion. TXI aids in the diagnosis of various UGI diseases, including early gastric cancer, esophageal cancer, premalignant conditions such as atrophic gastritis and Barrett's esophagus, and duodenal tumors. RDI utilizes specific wavelengths to enhance the visualization of deep blood vessels or bleeding points, aiding in the rapid and accurate identification of bleeding sources during endoscopic procedures. Although promising, TXI and RDI require further large-scale studies across diverse populations to establish their clinical utility, diagnostic performance, and cost-effectiveness before integration into the guidelines. Standardized training is also required for effective utilization. Overall, these IEE techniques has the potential to improve the diagnosis and management of UGI.

Detecting gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM) with white light endoscopy (WLE) remains a challenge and virtual chromoendoscopy methods have been shown to increase accuracy. We aimed to externally validate the Endoscopic Grading of Gastric Intestinal Metaplasia (EGGIM) using blue light imaging (BLI).

First, the reliability of BLI and the EGGIM score was evaluated through assessment of 90 images divided into three sets of 30. A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted at two Italian centers involving 102 patients (510 biopsies). Both per-biopsy and per-patient analyses were performed to ascertain accuracy of BLI in detecting and staging GIM (vs. histology).

BLI significantly enhanced interobserver agreement of endoscopic diagnosis of GIM, with a Fleiss Kappa of 0.4 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3-0.5), compared to 0.2 (95% CI 0.2-0.3) with WLE. Concordance was particularly strong in applying the EGGIM score (weighted Kappa 0.7; 95% CI 0.5-0.9). BLI showed significant improvements in sensitivity over WLE, with an increase observed in both per-biopsy analysis (82%; 95%CI 73.7-89.0 vs. 50%;95% CI 40.6-60.3) and per-patient analysis (96%; 95% CI 84.5-99.4 vs. 68%;95% CI 52.4-81.4). The area under the curve of EGGIM in diagnosing OLGIM III/IV was 0.9 (95% CI 0.8-1.0), confirming EGGIM > 4 being the optimal threshold (sensitivity of 80%, specificity of 88%).

Our study validates BLI integrated with the EGGIM system as an effective strategy, highlighting its precision in identifying advanced GIM stages. BLI's notable sensitivity enhances its use as a complementary tool to WLE, significantly improving gastric cancer risk assessment.

Corpus atrophic gastritis (CAG) is defined as autoimmune when the antrum is spared, representing this element a crucial diagnostic criterium of autoimmune gastritis. In contrast, CAG with concomitant antral gastritis (AG), atrophic or non-atrophic, is generally attributed to H. pylori infection. During the natural history of CAG, possible antrum healing has been supposed. The current study aimed to assess the antral mucosa histopathological changes at long-term follow-up (FU) with respect to baseline in patients with CAG and concomitant atrophic or non-atrophic gastritis AG.

Retrospective study on 130 patients with histologically diagnosed CAG with atrophic or non-atrophic AG. Mean FU gastroscopy was at 40.6 (range 4-192) months. Patients with confirmed CAG (n = 117; median age 66, range 20-87 years; 67.5 % F) were finally included. At baseline, 47 (40.2 %) had non-atrophic and 70 (59.8 %) atrophic AG. Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection was present at histology in 27.3 % of patients, all treated.

At FU, 30/117(25.6 %) patients showed a complete antral healing; 11/29(37.9 %) were Hp positive at baseline, cured in all but one. Atrophic AG regressed in 16/70(22.8 %) patients. Both, antral healing and regression of antral AG, were found to be similar in Hp-cured and not-cured/ naïve-negatives patients (p > 0.05).

In a subset of CAG patients, AG may regress at long-term FU irrespective of Hp cure, thus mimicking autoimmune atrophic gastritis and raising concerns about its current histopathological diagnostic criteria.

Conventional white light endoscopic (WLE) findings of H. pylori-associated gastritis are often non-specific and may not correlate with histology. Narrow band imaging (NBI), an optical digital technique employed for the visualization of vessels and patterns of gastric mucosa may improve identification. We evaluated the role of NBI in detecting H. pylori-associated gastritis and classifying its severity.

Institution-based prospective observational study conducted between May 2021-October 2022. Children presenting with chronic abdominal pain (>1-month duration) were evaluated. Eligible children underwent gastroscopy with NBI and gastric biopsies for rapid urease test and histopathology. NBI gastroscopic findings were classified into five grades as per the classification by Alboudy et al. The association of NBI grade with the presence and severity of H. pylori gastritis on histopathology was analysed.

Ninety children (mean age 12.65±3.91 years), 52 (57.7%) males with median duration of symptoms of 4.5 (3-12) months underwent gastroscopy. H. pylori was detected on histopathology in 29 (32%) patients. NBI findings suggested a mucosal abnormality in 27/29 (93.1%) children with H. pylori on histopathology. H. pylori positive gastritis was significantly more common among those with higher (≥3) NBI grades as compared to those with lower NBI grades (61% vs10%, P<0.001). No significant association was found between NBI grade and the severity of H. pylori gastritis (P=0.75). NBI exhibited better sensitivity (0.82) compared to WLE (0.55) in identifying H. pylori-associated gastritis. On receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, NBI had higher area under curve (0.79 vs 0.65) as compared to WLE.

NBI morphological pattern is a useful tool in identifying patients with H. pylori-associated gastritis.

Gastric cancer ranks fifth for incidence and fourth in the leading causes of mortality worldwide. In this study, we aimed to validate previously developed artificial intelligence (AI) computer-aided detection (CADe) algorithm, called ALPHAON® in detecting gastric neoplasm.

We used the retrospective data of 500 still images, including 5 benign gastric ulcers, 95 with gastric cancer, and 400 normal images. Thereby we validated the CADe algorithm measuring accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity with the result of receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC) and area under curve (AUC) in addition to comparing the diagnostic performance status of four expert endoscopists, four trainees, and four beginners from two university-affiliated hospitals with CADe algorithm. After a washing-out period of over 2 weeks, endoscopists performed gastric detection on the same dataset of the 500 endoscopic images again marked by ALPHAON®.

The CADe algorithm presented high validity in detecting gastric neoplasm with accuracy (0.88, 95% CI: 0.85 to 0.91), sensitivity (0.93, 95% CI: 0.88 to 0.98), specificity (0.87, 95% CI: 0.84 to 0.90), and AUC (0.962). After a washing-out period of over 2 weeks, overall validity improved in the trainee and beginner groups with the assistance of ALPHAON®. Significant improvement was present, especially in the beginner group (accuracy 0.94 (0.93 to 0.96) p < 0.001, sensitivity 0.87 (0.82 to 0.92) p < 0.001, specificity 0.96 (0.95 to 0.97) p < 0.001).

The high validation performance state of the CADe algorithm system was verified. Also, ALPHAON® has demonstrated its potential to serve as an endoscopic educator for beginners improving and making progress in sensitivity and specificity.

The updated Sydney system biopsy protocol (USSBP) standardizes the sampling of gastric biopsies for the detection of preneoplastic conditions (e.g., gastric intestinal metaplasia [GIM]), but the real-world diagnostic yield is not well-described.

To determine whether regular application of USSBP is associated with higher detection of chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG), GIM and autoimmune gastritis (AIG).

We performed a real-world retrospective study at an academic urban tertiary hospital in Chile. We manually reviewed medical records from consecutive patients undergoing esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) from January to December 2017. Seven endoscopists who performed EGDs were categorized into two groups (USSBP 'regular' and USSBP 'infrequent') based on USSBP adherence, using minimum 20% adherence as the prespecified threshold. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between endoscopist groups and the likelihood of diagnosing CAG, GIM or AIG.

1206 patients were included in the study (mean age: 58.5; 65.3% female). The USSBP regular group demonstrated a higher likelihood of detecting CAG (20% vs. 5.3%; aOR 4.03, 95%CI: 2.69-6.03), GIM (12.2% vs. 3.4%; aOR 3.91, 95%CI: 2.39-6.42) and AIG (2.9% vs. 0.8%; aOR 6.52, 95%CI: 1.87-22.74) compared to infrequent group. Detection of advanced-stage CAG (Operative Link for Gastritis Assessment stage III/IV) was significantly higher in the USSBP regular vs. infrequent group (aOR 5.84, 95%CI: 2.23-15.31).

Routine adherence to USSBP increases the detection rates of preneoplastic conditions, including CAG, GIM and AIG. Standardized implementation of USSBP should be considered in high gastric cancer risk populations.

Patients with stage III or IV of operative link for gastric intestinal metaplasia assessment (OLGIM) are at a higher risk of gastric cancer (GC). We aimed to construct a deep learning (DL) model based on magnifying endoscopy with narrow-band imaging (ME-NBI) to evaluate OLGIM staging.

This study included 4473 ME-NBI images obtained from 803 patients at three endoscopy centres. The endoscopic expert marked intestinal metaplasia (IM) regions on endoscopic images of the target biopsy sites. Faster Region-Convolutional Neural Network model was used to grade IM lesions and predict OLGIM staging.

The diagnostic performance of the model for IM grading in internal and external validation sets, as measured by the area under the curve (AUC), was 0.872 and 0.803, respectively. The accuracy of this model in predicting the high-risk stage of OLGIM was 84.0%, which was not statistically different from that of three junior (71.3%, p = 0.148) and three senior endoscopists (75.3%, p = 0.317) specially trained in endoscopic images corresponding to pathological IM grade, but higher than that of three untrained junior endoscopists (64.0%, p = 0.023).

This DL model can assist endoscopists in predicting OLGIM staging using ME-NBI without biopsy, thereby facilitating screening high-risk patients for GC.

The incidence of local recurrence following gastric endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) remains a clinical concern. We aimed to evaluate the impact of narrow safety margin (< 1 mm) on the recurrence rate.

A retrospective cohort study was conducted across two centers. Cases of R0-ESD with subsequent recurrence were compared to matched controls in a 1:2 ratio in a case-cohort analysis.

Over a median period of 25 months (IQR 14-43), a recurrence rate of 3% (95%CI 1.7-4.3) was observed, predominantly (13/21) following R0 resections with favourable histology. Endoscopic retreatment was feasible in 18 of 21 recurrences. The proportion of R0-cases where the safety margin in both horizontal (HM) and vertical (VM) margin exceeded 1 mm was similarly distributed in the recurrence and non-recurrence group, representing nearly 20% of cases. However, cases with HM less than 1 mm, despite VM greater than 1 mm, nearly doubled in the recurrence group (7.7% vs. 3.9%), and tripled when both margins were under 1 mm (23.1% vs. 7.7%). Despite this trend, statistical significance was not achieved (p = 0.05). In the overall cohort, the only independent risk factor significantly associated with local recurrence was the presence of residual tumor at the HM (HM1) or not assessable HM (HMx) (OR 16.5 (95%CI 4.4-61.7), and OR 11.7 (95%CI 1.1-124.1), respectively).

While not common or typically challenging to manage, recurrence post-ESD warrants attention and justifies rigorous post-procedural surveillance, especially in patients with HM1, HMx, and probably also in those with R0 resections but narrow safety margin.

Intestinal metaplasia (IM) of the gastric mucosa is strongly associated with the risk of gastric cancer (GC). This study was performed to investigate the usefulness of endoscopic and histological risk stratification for GC using IM.

This was a post-hoc analysis of a multicenter prospective study involving 10 Japanese facilities (UMINCTR000027023). The ridge/tubulovillous pattern, light blue crest (LBC), white opaque substance (WOS), endoscopic grading of gastric IM (EGGIM) score using non-magnifying image-enhanced endoscopy, and operative link on gastric IM assessment (OLGIM) were evaluated for their associations with GC risk in all patients.

In total, 380 patients (115 with GC and 265 without GC) were analyzed. The presence of an LBC (limited to antrum: odds ratio [OR] 2.4 [95% confidence interval 1.1-5.0], extended to corpus: OR 3.6 [2.1-6.3]), the presence of WOS (limited to antrum: OR 3.0 [1.7-5.3], extended to corpus: OR 4.2 [2.1-8.2]), and histological IM (limited to antrum: OR 3.2 [1.4-7.4], extended to corpus: OR 8.5 [4.5-16.0]) were significantly associated with GC risk. Additionally, the EGGIM score (5-8 points: OR 8.8 [4.4-16.0]) and OLGIM (stage III/IV: OR 12.5 [6.1-25.8]) were useful for stratification of GC risk. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value for GC risk was 0.740 for OLGIM and 0.706 for EGGIM.

The LBC, WOS, EGGIM, and OLGIM were strongly associated with GC risk in Japanese patients. This finding can be useful for GC risk assessment in daily clinical practice.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a major cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. It is often associated with a bad prognosis because of its asymptomatic phenotype until advanced stages, highlighting the need for its prevention and early detection. GC development is preceded by the emergence of gastric preneoplasia lesions (GPNLs), namely atrophic gastritis (AG), intestinal metaplasia (IM), and dysplasia (DYS). GC is currently diagnosed by endoscopy, which is invasive and costly and has limited effectiveness for the detection of GPNLs. Therefore, the discovery of non-invasive biomarkers in liquid biopsies, such as blood samples, in order to identify the presence of gastric preneoplasia and/or cancer lesions at asymptomatic stages is of paramount interest. This comprehensive review provides an overview of recently identified plasma/serum proteins and their diagnostic performance for the prediction of GPNLs and early cancer lesions. Autoantibodies appear to be promising biomarkers for AG, IM and early gastric cancer detection, along with inflammation and immunity-related proteins and antibodies against H. pylori virulence factors. There is a lack of specific protein biomarkers with which to detect DYS. Despite the need for further investigation and validation, some emerging candidates could pave the way for the development of reliable, non-invasive diagnostic tests for the detection and prevention of GC.

Gastric cancer remains a disease with an ominous prognosis, while early gastric cancer has a good-to-excellent prognosis, with 5-year survival rates of up to 92.6% after successful endoscopic resection. In this context, the accurate identification of patients with established gastric precancerous lesions, namely chronic atrophic gastritis and intestinal metaplasia, is the first step in a stepwise approach to minimize cancer risk. Although current guidelines advocate for the execution of random biopsies to stage the extent and severity of gastritis/intestinal metaplasia, modern biopsy protocols are still imperfect as they have limited reproducibility and are susceptible to sampling error. The advent of novel imaging-enhancing modalities, i.e., high-definition with virtual chromoendoscopy (CE), has revolutionized the inspection of gastric mucosa, leading to an endoscopy-based staging strategy for the management of these premalignant changes in the stomach. Nowadays, the incorporation of CE-targeted biopsies in everyday clinical practice offers not only the robust detection of premalignant lesions but also an improvement in quality, by reducing missed diagnoses along with mean biopsies and, thus, the procedural costs and the environmental footprint. In this review, we summarize the recent evidence regarding the endoscopic grading and sampling of gastric precancerous lesions.

To study and compare the value of the Kyoto classification risk scoring system and the modified Kyoto classification risk scoring system based on linked color imaging (LCI) in predicting the risk of early gastric cancer.

One hundred and fifty patients with pathologically confirmed non-cardia early gastric cancer by endoscopic LCI and 150 non-gastric cancer patients matched for age and gender were included. Basic patient data and whole gastric endoscopic images under LCI were collected, and the images were scored according to the LCI-based Kyoto classification risk scoring system and the LCI-based modified Kyoto classification risk scoring system.

Compared with the LCI-based Kyoto classification risk scoring system, the LCI-based modified Kyoto classification risk scoring system had a higher AUC for predicting the risk of early gastric cancer (0.723 vs. 0.784, p = 0.023), with a score of ≥3 being the best cutoff value for predicting the risk of early gastric cancer (sensitivity 61.33%, specificity 86.00%), and scores of 3 to 5 were significantly associated with early gastric carcinogenesis significantly (OR = 9.032, 95% CI: 4.995-16.330, p < 0.001).

Compared with the LCI-based Kyoto classification risk scoring system, the LCI-based Kyoto modified classification risk scoring system has a better value for predicting the risk of early gastric cancer, and the score of 3 to 5 is a high-risk factor for the risk of early gastric cancer development, which is more strongly correlated with the risk of early gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a significant healthcare concern, and the identification of high-risk patients is crucial. Indeed, gastric precancerous conditions present significant diagnostic challenges, particularly early intestinal metaplasia (IM) detection. This study developed a deep learning system to assist in IM detection using image patches from gastric corpus examined using virtual chromoendoscopy in a Western country. Utilizing a retrospective dataset of endoscopic images from Sant'Andrea University Hospital of Rome, collected between January 2020 and December 2023, the system extracted 200 × 200 pixel patches, classifying them with a voting scheme. The specificity and sensitivity on the patch test set were 76% and 72%, respectively. The optimization of a learnable voting scheme on a validation set achieved a specificity of 70% and sensitivity of 100% for entire images. Despite data limitations and the absence of pre-trained models, the system shows promising results for preliminary screening in gastric precancerous condition diagnostics, providing an explainable and robust Artificial Intelligence approach.

Autoimmune atrophic gastritis is an immune-mediated disease resulting in autoimmune destruction of the specialized acid-producing gastric parietal cells. As a consequence, in autoimmune atrophic gastritis, gastric acid secretion is irreversibly impaired, and the resulting hypochlorhydria leads to the main clinical manifestations and is linked, directly or indirectly, to the long-term neoplastic complications of this disease. In the last few years, autoimmune atrophic gastritis has gained growing interest leading to the acquisition of new knowledge on different aspects of this disorder. Although reliable serological biomarkers are available and gastrointestinal endoscopy techniques have substantially evolved, the diagnosis of autoimmune atrophic gastritis is still affected by a considerable delay and relies on histopathological assessment of gastric biopsies. One of the reasons for the diagnostic delay is that the clinical presentations of autoimmune atrophic gastritis giving rise to clinical suspicion are very different, ranging from hematological to neurological-psychiatric up to gastrointestinal and less commonly to gynecological-obstetric symptoms or signs. Therefore, patients with autoimmune atrophic gastritis often seek advice from physicians of other medical specialties than gastroenterologists, thus underlining the need for increased awareness of this disease in a broad medical and scientific community.

Gastrointestinal neoplasms are a growing global health concern, requiring prompt identification and treatment. Endoscopic procedures have revolutionized the detection and treatment of gastrointestinal tumors by providing accurate, minimally invasive methods. Early-stage malignancies can be treated with endoscopic excision, leading to improved outcomes and increased survival rates. Precancerous lesions, like adenomatous polyps, can be prevented by removing them, reducing cancer occurrence and death rates. Advanced techniques like chromoendoscopy, narrow-band imaging, and confocal laser endomicroscopy improve the ability to see the mucosa surface and diagnose conditions. Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications in endoscopy can enhance diagnostic accuracy and predict histology outcomes. However, challenges remain in accurately defining lesions and ensuring precise diagnosis and treatment selection. Molecular imaging approaches and therapeutic modalities like photodynamic therapy and endoscopic ultrasonography-guided therapies hold potential but require further study and clinical confirmation. This study examines the future prospects and obstacles in endoscopic procedures for the timely identification and treatment of gastrointestinal cancers. The focus is on developing technology, limits, and prospective effects on clinical practice.

Malignancies in the upper gastrointestinal tract are amenable to endoscopic resection at an early stage. Achieving a curative resection is the most stringent quality criterion, but post-resection risk assessment and aftercare are also part of a comprehensive quality program.

Various factors influence the achievement of curative resection. These include endoscopic assessment prior to resection using chromoendoscopy and HD technology. If resectability is possible, it is particularly important to delineate the lateral resection margins as precisely as possible before resection. Furthermore, the correct choice of resection technique depending on the lesion must be taken into account. Endoscopic submucosal dissection is the standard for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and gastric carcinoma. In Western countries, it is becoming increasingly popular to treat Barrett's neoplasia over 2 cm in size and/or with suspected submucosal infiltration with en bloc resection instead of piece meal resection. After resection, risk assessment based on the histopathological resection determines the patient's individual risk of lymph node metastases, particularly in the case of high-risk lesions. This is categorized according to the current literature.

This review presents clinical algorithms for endoscopic resection of esophageal SCC, Barrett's neoplasia, and gastric neoplasia. The algorithms include the pre-resection assessment of the lesion and the resection margins, the adequate resection technique for the respective lesion, as well as the post-resection risk assessment with an evidence-based recommendation for follow-up therapy and surveillance.

Recognizing Helicobacter pylori infection during endoscopy is important because it can lead to the performance of confirmatory testing. Linked color imaging (LCI) is an image enhancement technique that can improve the detection of gastrointestinal lesions. The purpose of this study was to compare LCI to conventional white light imaging (WLI) in the endoscopic diagnosis of H. pylori infection.

We conducted a comprehensive literature search using PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. All studies evaluating the diagnostic performance of LCI or WLI in the endoscopic diagnosis of H. pylori were eligible. Studies on magnifying endoscopy, chromoendoscopy, and artificial intelligence were excluded.

Thirty-four studies were included in this meta-analysis, of which 32 reported the performance of WLI and eight reported the performance of LCI in diagnosing H. pylori infection. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of WLI in the diagnosis of H. pylori infection were 0.528 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.517 to 0.540) and 0.821 (95% CI, 0.811 to 0.830), respectively. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of LCI in the diagnosis of H. pylori were 0.816 (95% CI, 0.790 to 0.841) and 0.868 (95% CI, 0.850 to 0.884), respectively. The pooled diagnostic odds ratios of WLI and LCI were 15.447 (95% CI, 8.225 to 29.013) and 31.838 (95% CI, 15.576 to 65.078), respectively. The areas under the summary receiver operating characteristic curves of WLI and LCI were 0.870 and 0.911, respectively.

LCI showed higher sensitivity in the endoscopic diagnosis of H. pylori infection than standard WLI.

The present paper reflects the position of the Italian Association for Neuroendocrine Tumors (Itanet), the Italian Society of Gastroenterology (SIGE), and the Italian Society of Digestive Endoscopy (SIED) regarding the management of patients affected by gastric, duodenal, and rectal neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) amenable to endoscopic treatment. The key questions discussed in this paper are summarized in Table 1. Data were extracted from the MEDLINE database through searches; expert opinions and recommendations are provided in accordance with the available scientific evidence and the authors' expertise. Recommendations are presented alongside a level of evidence and grade of recommendation based on the GRADE system. This paper specifically focuses on subgroups of NENs considered suitable for endoscopic management according to current international guidelines: i. well-differentiated gastric neuroendocrine tumors (gNET) type 1 < 2 cm and selected cases of type 3; ii. well-differentiated duodenal, non-functioning, non-ampullary NET with size < 2 cm; and well-differentiated rectal NET with size < 2 cm.

At the end of the last century, a far-sighted 'working party' held in Sydney, Australia addressed the clinicopathological issues related to gastric inflammatory diseases. A few years later, an international conference held in Houston, Texas, USA critically updated the seminal Sydney classification. In line with these initiatives, Kyoto Global Consensus Report, flanked by the Maastricht-Florence conferences, added new clinical evidence to the gastritis clinicopathological puzzle.The most relevant topics related to the gastric inflammatory diseases have been addressed by the Real-world Gastritis Initiative (RE.GA.IN.), from disease definitions to the clinical diagnosis and prognosis. This paper reports the conclusions of the RE.GA.IN. consensus process, which culminated in Venice in November 2022 after more than 8 months of intense global scientific deliberations. A forum of gastritis scholars from five continents participated in the multidisciplinary RE.GA.IN. consensus. After lively debates on the most controversial aspects of the gastritis spectrum, the RE.GA.IN. Faculty amalgamated complementary knowledge to distil patient-centred, evidence-based statements to assist health professionals in their real-world clinical practice. The sections of this report focus on: the epidemiology of gastritis; Helicobacter pylori as dominant aetiology of environmental gastritis and as the most important determinant of the gastric oncogenetic field; the evolving knowledge on gastric autoimmunity; the clinicopathological relevance of gastric microbiota; the new diagnostic horizons of endoscopy; and the clinical priority of histologically reporting gastritis in terms of staging. The ultimate goal of RE.GA.IN. was and remains the promotion of further improvement in the clinical management of patients with gastritis.