Question on Stomach Ulcers

Hi, I have been having stomach problems since early 2008. Long story short, I had my gallbladder out 11/14/08 and I had an endoscopy just prior to that which revealed I have three stomach ulcers which are healing. Prior to the endoscopy my doctor had put me on Protonix initially, didn't help. My stool turned black, got back in and we then tried Nexium and was sent for the scope, already mentioned. They did a biopsy of the ulcers which came back negative for h. pylori. I have a very stressful job and used to eat ibuprofen like candy and now, I no longer take any aspirin, ibuprofen, etc. My ulcers seem to be under control because I have changed my diet. No more coffee, very limited alcohol, no spicy foods, no citrus, nothing that will produce acid. I don't want to have to take meds so I am trying to control this on my own and I think doing a pretty good job of it.
My best friend was just diagnosed with h. pylori and is having a lot of issues. We are constantly eating off the same plate, same drink, etc. Does anyone know if it is possible that at one time I did have h. pylori and when they did the endoscopy it just did not show up? Or, if you have h. pylori at anytime will it always show up no matter if it is active? I am going to be careful with my friend as I don't want to be exposed given my current stomach condition. Thanks!

[CalGal]

If nothing showed up in the biopsy, the only way to know whether you ever had H. pylori would be to do a blood test using antibodies. If you had ever had H. pylori you'll pop positive on that test. It's one of the reasons it can't be used to check if you've cleared H. pylori after being treated for it. You have to use a breath test instead.

[mor777]

Thanks for your reply. My memory seems to tell me that I did have a blood test last summer which was negative for h. pylori but I will need to double check that one. Thanks again!