Natural history of adult-onset Menetrier's disease: Report of a case with 9-year follow-up

Menetrier's disease (MD) is a rare disease characterized by markedly hypertrophied gastric mucosal folds typically associated with hypoalbuminemia and anemia. However, the natural history of MD in adults remains unclear and is rarely reported in the literature. The current study presents a case of MD with a 9-year follow-up. A 56-year-old man was diagnosed with MD in 2005. The patient was followed up and underwent surveillance endoscopy once or twice each year. In the present case, the anemia and hypoproteinemia were eliminated following red blood cell transfusion and intravenous iron therapies. The symptoms were relieved after 4 years. Treatment with octreotide had little effect on the gastric mucosa, while antimicrobial combination therapy provided no benefit in the present H. pylori-negative case of MD. In addition, despite abnormalities of the gastric mucosa in the patient persisting after 9 years of follow-up with no evidence of malignancy, malignant transformation in MD should not be overlooked, and regular monitoring of the gastric mucosa via endoscopy is necessary.