Safety evaluation of prophylactic hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy in elderly patients with locally advanced gastric cancer / 中华老年医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To analyze the short-term effects of prophylactic intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy(HIPEC)on elderly patients diagnosed with gastric cancer.Methods:The study enrolled patients with gastric cancer who underwent curative gastrectomy combined with postoperative HIPEC at Beijing Hospital between January 2017 and September 2022.The patients were divided into two groups based on age young patients(age <65 years, n=45)and elderly patients(age≥65 years, n=32). The study evaluated the safety of HIPEC prophylactic application in elderly patients with gastric cancer by comparing their clinicopathological data, postoperative recovery, complications, and laboratory tests with those of another group of patients.Results:The study found that the elderly patients had a higher rate of comorbidities and higher ASA scores compared to the younger patients.Additionally, the elderly patients received HIPEC treatment less frequently than the younger patients( P=0.030). The proportion of young patients receiving one, two, and three times of HIPEC treatment was 8.9%, 57.8%, and 33.3%, respectively, while the proportion of elderly patients receiving the same was 28.1%, 59.4%, and 12.5%, respectively.The study found no significant differences in pathological characteristics between the two groups, including tumor stage, type, location, and differentiation degree.Additionally, there was no difference in the proportion of laparoscopic gastrectomy, type of resection, combined resection, duration of the operation, and intraoperative blood loss between elderly and young patients.The rate of complications between the two groups was also not significantly different(20.0% vs.21.9%; P=0.100). The mean duration of hospitalization after radical gastrectomy was 14.0 days in the young group and 15.5 days in the elderly group, respectively( P=0.480). Conclusions:Elderly patients with gastric cancer treated with radical gastrectomy combined with HIPEC did not experience increased postoperative complications or hospital stay compared to young patients, suggesting that prophylactic HIPEC was safe and feasible for elderly patients with locally advanced gastric cancer, as evidenced by favorable postoperative recovery and laboratory tests.