Aim: BMI and the lymph node (LN) ratio can affect short- and long-term outcomes of patients with gastric cancer.
Patients & methods: This study includes 104 consecutive patients with gastric adenocarcinoma who underwent curative gastrectomy divided in two groups: overweight group (group A) and normal weight group (group B).
Results: We found that 53.4% of our patients were overweight (group A). The overall rate of postoperative complications was 16.3%, while mortality was 1%. Statistical analyses revealed that postoperative morbidity was significantly higher in group A (p < 0.05). Long-term survival was significantly higher in group B. Cox regression showed a statistically significant correlation between higher BMI and poor long-term survival after curative gastrectomy. Multivariate analysis has identified age and the LN ratios as independent prognostic factors of survival.
Conclusion: In this retrospective analysis, BMI and LN ratio were independently associated with survival in patients with gastric cancer. Further studies are needed to confirm our findings.