The GEM Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The GEM Study: Gastric HormonE BioMarkers of Preneoplastic Lesions
IRAS ID
332976
Contact name
Gwen Murphy
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 29 days
Research summary
Stomach cancer is the fifth most common cancer in the UK and most (70%) of cases are diagnosed when the cancer is already at an advanced stage. Stomach cancer arises following chronic inflammation of the stomach. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a bacteria that can cause an infection in the stomach. It is very common, some people estimate that 50% of people worldwide are infected with H. pylori. For a small number of people, this infection can lead to long term irritation of the stomach, which can cause some of the cells inside the stomach to change. For a small number of people the cells inside the stomach change so much that they become cancerous. A blood marker of these changes could help us to identify people who might be at a high risk of developing cancer and enable us to diagnose the cancer at an early stage when treatment is more likely to be successful.
People undergoing endoscopy at participating studies sites will be invited to join our study called, the GEM Study. We will recruit 200 people with normal stomach lining, 200 people with chronic inflammation of the stomach (called chronic atrophic gastritis) and 200 people with some changes to the cells of their stomach (called intestinal metaplasia). Those who join the study will be asked to give a blood sample and complete a short questionnaire. Our team will use the blood sample to measure ghrelin, gastrin, pepsinogen and vitamin B12. We will explore whether the blood measurements reflect the condition of the stomach and whether these measurements could be used for the early detection of stomach cancer.
REC name
West Midlands - Coventry & Warwickshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/WM/0243
Date of REC Opinion
7 Nov 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion