Protein Supplementation in a Prehabilitation Program in Patients Undergoing Surgery for Endometrial Cancer

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Surgical Nutrition
• Perioperative Care

Background:

• Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) and prehabilitation programs are multidisciplinary approaches to optimize surgical outcomes.
• Nutritional interventions are key components of these perioperative pathways.
• Endometrial cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery are a focus for improving surgical recovery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effect of daily 20 mg protein supplementation within a prehabilitation program.
• To assess the impact on postoperative serum albumin, prealbumin, and total protein levels.
• To determine the efficacy of this specific nutritional intervention in endometrial cancer patients.

Main Methods:

• A prospective study involving 185 endometrial cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery.
• Patients were categorized into three groups: preERAS, ERAS, and Prehab (prehabilitation with protein supplementation).
• Primary outcome measured was serum albumin, prealbumin, and total protein levels 24-48 hours post-surgery.

Main Results:

• No significant baseline differences in serum protein levels were observed between the groups.
• Postoperative decreases in serum albumin, prealbumin, and total protein were similar across all groups.
• The prehabilitation group showed lower protein levels pre-surgery despite supplementation.

Conclusions:

• Daily supplementation of 20 mg protein does not appear to influence serum protein levels in this prehabilitation setting.
• Further research with higher protein dosages is warranted to explore potential benefits.
• The current protein supplementation regimen may not be sufficient to alter perioperative protein status.