Quality of Life Following the Surgical Management of Gastric Cancer Using Patient-Reported Outcomes: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Introduction: Surgical management of gastric adenocarcinoma can have a drastic impact on a patient’s quality of life (QoL). There is high variability among surgeons’ preferences for the type of resection and reconstructive method. Peri-operative and cancer-specific outcomes remain equivalent between the different approaches. Therefore, postoperative quality of life can be viewed as a deciding factor for the surgical approach. The goal of this study was to interrogate patient QoL using patient-reported outcomes (PROs) following gastrectomy for gastric cancer. Methods: This systematic review was registered at Prospero and followed PRISMA guidelines. Medline, Embase, and Scopus were used to perform a literature search on 18 January 2020. A set of selection criteria and the data extraction sheet were predefined. Covidence (Melbourne, Australia) software was used; two reviewers (P.C.V. and E.J.) independently reviewed the articles, and a third resolved conflicts (A.B.F.). Results: The search yielded 1446 studies; 308 articles underwent full-text review. Ultimately, 28 studies were included for qualitative analysis, including 4630 patients. Significant heterogeneity existed between the studies. Geography was predominately East Asian (22/28 articles). While all aspects of quality of life were found to be affected by a gastrectomy, most functional or symptom-specific measures reached baseline by 6–12 months. The most significant ongoing symptoms were reflux, diarrhoea, and nausea/vomiting. Discussion: Generally, patients who undergo a gastrectomy return to baseline QoL by one year, regardless of the type of surgery or reconstruction. A subtotal distal gastrectomy is preferred when proper oncologic margins can be obtained. Additionally, no one form of reconstruction following gastrectomy is statistically preferred over another. However, for subtotal distal gastrectomy, there was a trend toward Roux-en-Y reconstruction as superior to abating reflux.