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1. Introduction
Chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gastric mucosal tissue characterized by atrophy of the gastric mucosal glands, which may be accompanied by intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia.[
1] Available studies suggest that “chronic non-atrophic gastritis - chronic atrophic gastritis - intestinal epithelial hyperplasia - atypical hyperplasia” is the unique progression pattern of gastric cancer.[
2] CAG is a precancerous lesion of gastric cancer,[
3] and its development is associated with helicobacter pylori (HP) infection.[
4] It has been shown that eradication of HP can slow down the progression of gastric precancerous lesions[
5,
6] and reduce the incidence of gastric cancer in infected populations.[
7] However, some patients with CAG continue to experience persistent discomfort after eradication of HP, and these symptoms significantly affect the patient’s daily life.[
8] Additionally, the incidence of gastric cancer in patients with severe CAG can still reach 116/1,00,000 people after eradication of HP,[
9] seriously endangering patients’ lives and health. Therefore, patients with CAG still need maintenance therapy after eradication of HP to further reduce the risk of gastric cancer and improve clinical symptoms
. The Chinese Integrated Guideline on Clinical Management of Gastric Precancerous Conditions and Lesions state that folic acid and antioxidant vitamins are effective in improving the prognosis of CAG,[10] but the Management of Epithelial Precancerous Conditions and Lesions in the Stomach (MAPS II) do not recognize their benefit,[2] and CAG still lacks effective drugs for maintenance therapy. Therefore, it is necessary to explore other treatment options that can improve the prognosis of CAG.[7]