Early diagnosis represents the most important measure to decrease gastric cancer mortality. Endoscopists should be trained to perform standardized extremely rigorous observation with a low threshold of suspicion for neoplasia. Together with recent interest in new imaging techniques such as magnification, chromoendoscopy should be considered to represent a simple, safe and inexpensive technique that may be useful in identifying premalignant conditions and minute cancerous lesions, estimating their superficial extent and determining the histological type and submucosal invasion.