Quality of Life after Laparoscopic and Open Resection of Colorectal Cancer

Abstract

Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate quality of life (QOL) outcomes after colorectal surgery for cancer from a 6-month perspective at a single institution. Methods: Cohort study to prospectively assess postoperative QOL in patients who underwent elective colorectal resection at the University Hospital Ostrava. QOL was assessed using the validated Short Form 36 (SF-36v2™) questionnaire at fixed time points. Results: A total of 148 patients were enrolled in the study (83 and 65 patients underwent laparoscopic and open colorectal resection, respectively). Operative time was significantly longer (161 vs. 133 min; p = 0.0073) and length of hospital stay was significantly shorter (10.7 vs. 13.1 days; p = 0.0451) in the laparoscopic group. Overall 30-day morbidity rates were lower in the laparoscopic group, but the difference was not significant (27.7 vs. 33.8%; p = 0.2116). QOL scores were comparable in both study groups before surgery (p ≥ 0.05). QOL was statistically significantly lower 2 days and 1 week after open colorectal surgery compared with laparoscopic surgery. One month and 6 months after surgery, there were no statistically significant differences between groups. Conclusion: The present study suggests a higher postoperative QOL during the first month after laparoscopic colorectal resection could be one of the benefits of laparoscopy.

Long‐term functional outcome of colonic resections: how much does faecal impairment influence quality of life?

“…A negative impact of anastomotic leakage on postoperative quality of life in colorectal cancer patients has previously been shown . Our results with regard to the laparoscopic approach are aligned with several studies that have shown an improved quality of life in the early postoperative period . However, a systematic review comprising 13 randomized trials with more than 2000 patients found no clinically relevant benefit for laparoscopic compared to open surgery with regard to quality of life , so this point remains controversial.…”

Effect of Exercise Training on Quality of Life after Colorectal and Lung Cancer Surgery: A Meta-Analysis

“…HRQoL is a multidimensional construct encompassing patients’ perceptions of domains such as physical, emotional, social, and cognitive functions [ 35 ], and these perceptions are influenced not only by exercise capacity [ 20 ], but also by clinical factors such as the administration of adjuvant chemotherapy [ 36 , 37 ], specific symptoms such as fatigue and pain [ 38 , 39 , 40 ], the extent of surgical resection [ 12 , 13 , 40 , 41 ], and psychosocial determinants such as anxiety, depression, self-efficacy, and social support [ 14 ]. Furthermore, evidence on the effects of pre- and/or postoperative exercise training on HRQoL has been limited to reviews that only included preoperative assessments [ 28 , 30 ], have not provided information on important health dimensions such as global quality of life and cancer-specific symptoms such as fatigue [ 34 ], and included non-randomized control trials in the quantitative synthesis [ 27 ], which tend to result in larger effect estimates [ 42 ].…”

The quality of life in colorectal cancer patients: a mixed-methods study

“…This study attempted to determine the quality of life of patients with colorectal cancer surgery and examined the effects that problems experienced by patients in the early period after being discharged had on their quality of life, using both quantitative and qualitative research methods. It has been reported in the literature that the quality of life of patients after colorectal cancer surgery is lower than before surgery (Ihnát et al, 2014;Sharma et al, 2007;Yoo et al, 2005). In this study, the mean quality-of-life scores of the patients were found to be lower after surgery than before surgery.…”