Gastric cancer is a public health problem and one of the leading causes of cancer mortality. Latin America has one of the highest incidence and mortality rates in the world. One of the main causes of gastric cancer is Helicobacter pylori infection, which has a prevalence of over 80% in the population. Despite this, incidence and mortality vary geographically. For example, in Colombia, the incidence in the Andean region is around 150 per 100,000 inhabitants, while in the coastal region it is 6 per 100,000 inhabitants. This same pattern has been observed in several South American countries, such as Chile, Peru, and Ecuador.
