General perioperative management of gastric cancer patients at high-volume centers

Background Gastric cancer is very common in Korea and Japan, where many hospitals annually perform high numbers of gastrectomies for gastric cancer. The aim of this study was to compare the general management of gastric cancer in high-volume centers in Korea and Japan. Methods We undertook a survey of the general management of gastric cancer at high-volume centers (over 200 cases/year) and analyzed the answers. Results In six of 14 hospitals surveyed, antimicrobial prophylaxis for elective gastrectomy was administered until postoperative day 3. A Levin tube and an abdominal drain were routinely inserted in seven and ten hospitals, respectively. Laboratory tests, such as complete blood cell H. S. Ahn  H.-K. Yang (&) Department of Surgery and Cancer Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, 28 Yeongeon-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-744, Korea e-mail: hkyang@snu.ac.kr J. H. Yook Department of Surgery, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea C. H. Park Department of Surgery, Catholic University Seoul St. Mary Hospital, Seoul, Korea Y. K. Park Department of Surgery, Chonnam National University Hospital, Gwangju, Korea W. Yu Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea M.-S. Lee Department of Surgery, Soon Chun Hyang University Cheonan Hospital, Cheonan, Korea H. Sang-Uk Department of Surgery, Ajou University Hospital, Suwon, Korea K. W. Ryu Division of Gastric Cancer, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Korea T. S. Sohn Department of Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea H.-H. Kim Department of Surgery, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea S. H. Choi Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Kangnam Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea S. H. Noh Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea N. Hiki Cancer Institute Hospital of Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, Tokyo, Japan T. Sano National Cancer Center, Tokyo, Japan Present Address: T. Sano Cancer Institute Hospital of Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, Tokyo, Japan 123 Gastric Cancer (2011) 14:178–182 DOI 10.1007/s10120-011-0012-x count, liver function test, electrolytes, and blood urea nitrogen/creatinine were performed frequently on postoperative days 1, 2, 3, and 5. Sips of water after open distal gastrectomy were restarted up to postoperative day 3 in twelve hospitals. The surgical pathology was reported up to postoperative day 10 in thirteen hospitals. Twelve hospitals provided a regular patient education program and only one hospital provided an integrated education program which included the participation of a surgeon, an oncologist, a nurse, and a nutritionist. Conclusions The general management of gastric cancer in 14 high-volume centers was not so different among the centers. The general management protocols noted here are expected to provide useful information for perioperative care.