New research is suggesting a strong association between mouth bacteria and gastric cancer.The study, published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine, examined the gut microbiome in stool and oral microbiome from saliva and the tongue.The China-based researchers with BGI Genomics analyzed 404 samples from Chinese patients with gastric cancer in one group, and chronic gastritis in another.DEATHS FROM ONE TYPE OF CANCER ARE SURGING AMONG YOUNG ADULTS WITHOUT COLLEGE DEGREESGut microbes were different in gastric cancer, the researchers found, unveiling 28 varying gut species. Most were oral bacteria, including Streptococcus — bacteria that can sometimes cause strep throat — lactobacillus and other lactic acid bacteria.Twenty oral-gut species were found in both saliva and stool and were more common in the gut of gastric cancer patients.The findings suggest the transmission of these bacteria from mouth to gut, after finding that the oral bacteria matched closely to the gut bacteria in the same person, according to genetic comparisons.The researchers suggest that saliva and stool samples could help indicate patterns that are linked to stomach cancer, although more research is required before testing is ready for clinical use.CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER"Collectively, these findings underscore the critical role of the oral-gut microbiome axis in [gastric cancer]," the researchers concluded in the study publication.Since this is a cross-sectional analysis, the results cannot prove that these bacteria cause cancer, but they do suggest a strong association.Dr. Brian Slomovitz, director of gynecologic oncology and co-chair of the Cancer Research Committee at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida, talked about the "initiator-promoter" model of this study in an interview with Fox News Digital."[The study] demonstrates how the microbiome of one area of the body can migrate and affect the ability of cancers to develop in another part of the body," said Slomovitz, who was not involved in the new study. "The initiator in gastric cancers is usually inflammatory, such as H.pylori infection," he continued. "This inflammation leads to damaged mucosal cells where the lactic acid-producing bacteria can colonize. This helps to explain why cancers still develop even after treating H. pylori infection."The new findings could be applied to using the saliva for early cancer detection, Slomovitz suggested, which may help identify the disease even in pre-cancer states."Perhaps we will learn that by altering the microbiome, we can help better treat cancers (in combination with immunotherapy or chemotherapy) or even prevent cancer," he said. "These results… [TheTopNews] Read More.
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