Quality of life after total and subtotal gastrectomy for gastric carcinoma

There remains debate as to whether quality of life (QoL) is better for patients following sub-total gastrectomy (SG) or total gastrectomy (TG) for cancer. Both have similar survival rates provided an R0 resection is performed and in many series the morbidity and mortality after TG is higher than SG. The aim of this study was to evaluate the QoL in patients after TG and SG for cancer.

All surviving patients who had undergone TG or SG between 1994 and 2009 were identified from a prospectively collected database and sent the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) core questionnaire (QLQ-C30 v.3) and the gastric module (QLQ-STO22).

From a total of 261 patients who had undergone TG or SG in the study period, 91 were still alive and 53 responded. There was no significant difference between the QoL between TG and SG based on functional scales and global health status. However dysphagia and eating restrictions were significantly worse in the TG group.

This study has demonstrated that there is no difference in overall QoL in patients with TG or SG although eating restrictions and dysphagia are worse after TG.