Targeting IL-1ß in patients with advanced Helicobacter pylori infection: a potential therapy for gastric cancer.

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is a causal factor of gastric cancer. This disease is strongly associated to an inflammatory factor (interleukin 1ß). On the therapeutic front, eradication of H. pylori was thought to be efficient to restore gastric comfort. However, successful H. pylori eradication in patients with advanced stages of this infection failed to diminish inflammation, due to the inflammatory factor cited preciously, thereby exacerbating gastric tissue damage. In this review, we will discuss the functional relevance of IL-1ß in advanced H. pylori infection and how its targeting may bring clinical benefit.