Changes in Eating Behaviors and Physical and Mental State of Gastric Cancer Patients during the First 6 Months after Surgery

[Abstract][Purpose:] To quantitatively assess and clarify the relationships between eating behaviors, physical symptoms, and depression over 6 months postoperatively in patients who have undergone gastrectomy for gastric cancer. [Methods:] Questionnaire surveys to post-gastrectomy patients on eating behavior, post-gastrectomy dysfunction (DAUGS), and depression (CES-D) were conducted five times during the 6 months after surgery (before discharge, and 2 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after surgery). The longitudinal changes of each item were analyzed using a repeated measure ANOVA, and the relationships between post-gastrectomy dysfunction and patient factors were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA. The relationships between depression and post-gastrectomy dysfunction were analyzed using correlations. [Results:] The subjects were 64 post-gastrectomy patients. The mean age was 66.5 (SD 10.3) years and 40 were males. Forty-six patients had distal gastrectomy. Fifty-three were diagnosed as gastric cancer stage I. The participants' body weight had decreased by about 10% at 6 months after surgery (p