Receiver Operating Curves (ROC) were used to compare diagnostic accuracy of gastrin and pepsinogen-I for PA in patients under chronic treatment with PPIs and in untreated patients.
For these reasons we studied the values of some markers of PA in a group of 79 first-degree relatives and we detected that the most frequent abnormalities are a decrease in serum pepsinogen I (22.7% of cases), an increase in serum gastrin (16.5% of cases) and in parietal cell antibody at a titer >or=40 (23.4% of cases).
While epidemiological evidence from patients with elevated serum gastrin levels related to pernicious anaemia does not support an increased risk for colon cancer, a recent study suggests that prolonged hypergastrinaemia is associated with an increased risk for colon cancer.
The total prevalence of chronic gastritis was similar in the two groups, but severe atrophic gastritis of the body of the stomach (AGB), achlorhydria, parietal cell antibodies, and a raised fasting serum gastrin level were significantly more common in PA relatives than in controls.
The results recommend serum PG I and serum gastrin, but not parietal cell antibody, as tests for severe atrophic gastritis in relatives of patients with pernicious anemia.