Some bacteria may help protect against the development of a type of esophageal cancer, known as adenocarcinoma, according to a new review of the medical literature. These bacteria, which are called Helicobacter pylori, live in the stomachs of humans.
The review, published in the October issue of Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, found that people who had H. pylori strains carrying a gene called CagA were almost half as likely to get adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, a cancer that develops in the tube that passes food from the throat to the stomach.
"CagA- positive strains of H. pylori may decrease the risk of adenocarcinoma by reducing acid production in the stomach and, therefore, reducing acid reflux to the esophagus," said study co-author Farin Kamangar, M.D., Ph.D., a research fellow at the National Cancer Institute. "It may also work by decreasing the production of the hormone ghrelin, which is secreted from the stomach to stimulate appetite. A reduction in the level of ghrelin may lead to lower rates of obesity, an important risk factor for adenocarcinoma."