Quality of Life of Young Gastric Cancer Survivors: An Interpretation in the Context of Our Society

TL;DR

This study compares the quality of life of young and older gastric cancer survivors, finding that younger patients have better physical functioning and body image but worse digestion-related quality of life after surgery.

Contribution

The study highlights the need for quality of life support for young gastric cancer survivors, who face unique post-surgery challenges.

Findings

Younger patients had better physical functioning and body image quality of life after surgery.

Younger patients experienced worse digestion-related quality of life (diarrhea) post-surgery.

Quality of life differences between age groups persisted over time after surgery.

Abstract

Background and Objectives: This retrospective case-control study aimed to investigate the quality of life (QoL) of young gastric cancer survivors and determine what should be pursued to obtain the best QoL for them after surgery. Materials and Methods: Patients with stage I gastric cancer who underwent distal subtotal gastrectomy were included. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life questionnaires were used to assess QoL. The QoL outcomes of younger (age 30–49 years, n = 76) and older (age 50–69 years, n = 232) groups were compared preoperatively, 3 months, and 1 year postoperatively. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in the preoperative QoL except for the physical functioning scale, which favored the younger group (p = 0.020). This difference remained significant throughout the postoperative periods (3 months, p = 0.002; 1 year, p = 0.004). Better QoL was found for the younger group according to the body image scale (p = 0.031). However, it was limited to the 3-month postoperative assessment. Persistent QoL disadvantages for the younger group were revealed by the diarrhea scale at the 3-month (p = 0.007) and 1-year (p = 0.005) postoperative assessments. Conclusions: While young gastric cancer survivors enjoyed better QoL in physical functioning and body image, worse QoL was related to diarrhea after surgery. Despite ever-rising concerns about QoL deterioration in elderly patients in our aged society, young gastric cancer survivors also need QoL support.