Last updated: 11/24/2009

Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) is fairly common in the general United States population. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), about 10% of all Americans will develop an ulcer in the stomach or duodenum at some point in their life. About...

four million adults are diagnosed or treated each year for PUD; one million will be hospitalized for treatment; and 40,000 will have surgery for an ulcer-related condition. About 6,500 Americans die each year from complications related to PUD. The annual costs to the United States economy from peptic ulcer disease are estimated to be over $6 billion.

Peptic ulcers can develop at any age, but in the United States they are very unusual in children and uncommon in adolescents. Adults between the ages of 30 and 50 are most likely to develop duodenal ulcers, while gastric ulcers are most common in those over 60. Duodenal ulcers are more common in men, and gastric ulcers are more common in women. Other risk factors for PUD include heavy smoking and a family history of either duodenal or gastric ulcers.

GAVE, or watermelon stomach, is a very rare cause of gastrointestinal bleeding that was first identified in 1952. It has been associated with such disorders as scleroderma, cirrhosis of the liver, familial Mediterranean fever, and heart disease. GAVE affects women slightly more than twice as often as men. It is almost always found in the elderly; the average age at diagnosis is 73 in women and 68 in men.

Gastric cancer is the 14th most common type of malignant tumor in the United States; however, it occurs much more frequently in Japan and other parts of Asia than in western Europe and North America. About 24,000 people in the United States are diagnosed each year with gastric cancer. Risk factors for developing it include infection of the stomach lining by Helicobacter pylori; Asian American, Hispanic, or African American heritage; age 60 or older; heavy smoking; a history of pernicious anemia; and a diet heavy in dry salted foods. Men are more likely to develop gastric cancer than women. Some doctors think that exposure to certain toxic chemicals in the workplace is also a risk factor for gastric cancer.