Key clinical point: Preoperative plasma levels of the appetite-regulating gut hormone ghrelin may predict postoperative weight loss in patients who have undergone subtotal gastrectomy (STG) for gastric cancer.
Major finding: After adjusting for confounders, the area under the curve preoperative ghrelin level showed a significant negative correlation (ρ –0.8; P = .024) with the change in weight loss in the 4 months after STG.
Study details: Findings are from a prospective study including 13 patients aged 20-75 years with gastric cancer who underwent STG and 14 controls with no history of gastrointestinal surgery.
Disclosures: This study was supported by The Korean Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Jung HK et al. Association between gut regulatory hormones and post-operative weight loss following gastrectomy in patients with gastric cancer. J Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2022;28(3):409-417 (Jul 30). Doi: 10.5056/jnm21145