Background/aim: The relationship between gastric cancer and oral health has been reported in several studies. This study aimed to determine the relationship between the postoperative prognosis of gastric cancer and oral health using preoperative tooth loss as a simple index.
Patients and methods: We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study. Patients were divided into two groups according to the number of tooth losses. The survival curve was constructed using the Kaplan-Meier method. We also performed univariate and multivariate analyses of overall survival based on Cox proportional hazard regression to determine prognostic factors.
Results: A total of 191 patients were divided into two groups: those with seven or more tooth losses and those with less than seven tooth losses. The three-year overall survival rate was 71.5% in the group with seven or more tooth losses and 87.0% in the group with less than seven tooth losses. The group with seven or more tooth losses had a significantly lower overall survival rate compared to the group with less than seven tooth losses (p=0.0014). However, in multivariate analysis, tooth loss was not identified as an independent prognostic factor whereas age, clinical T stage, CEA level, and serum albumin level were independent poor prognostic factors.
Conclusion: Preoperative tooth loss was not a prognostic factor for gastric cancer after gastrectomy, but tooth loss may be a simple and useful method for evaluating frailty in patients.
Keywords: Tooth loss; frailty; gastric cancer; prognosis.
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