Long-term quality of life after laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate whether laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy (LADG) contributes to long-term quality of life as compared to open gastrectomy in patients with early-stage gastric cancer.


METHODS
Quality of life was self-reported using a 15-item questionnaire with five options for each question. The responses obtained from 47 LADG patients and 33 conventional open gastrectomy patients were compared. All patients underwent Billroth I gastrectomy for early gastric cancer between September 1999 and October 2002.


RESULTS
Patients who underwent LADG showed better results than those who underwent the open procedure with regard to satisfaction with the operation (87.2% vs. 57.6%; P < 0.01). However, the rate of late complications such as delayed gastric emptying was higher in the LADG group than in the open group (40.4% vs. 18.2%; P < 0.05). No differences were observed between the LADG and open groups with regard to appetite loss, heartburn, diarrhea, or difficulty in swallowing.


CONCLUSIONS
LADG has an equivocal effect on long-term quality of life. Satisfaction with the surgical procedure was greater in patients who underwent the LADG method; however, complications that impaired the quality of life were also seen. The usefulness of LADG should be assessed in view of the immediate and relatively short-term outcomes and their effect on long-term quality of life.
Ikenaga
Naoki
N
Department of Surgery, Kitakyushu Municipal Medical Center, Fukuoka, Japan. naoki@surg1.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp
Nishihara
Kazuyoshi
K
Iwashita
Toshimitsu
T
Suehara
Nobuhiro
N
Mitsuyama
Shoshu
S
D000368:Aged; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D005743:Gastrectomy / Q000379:methods*; D005763:Gastroenterostomy; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011788:Quality of Life; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome