Background: Nutritional management of patients with gastric cancer (GC) represents a challenge.
Summary: This review provides an overview of the present evidence on nutritional support in patients with GC undergoing surgery as well as in those with advanced disease.
Key message: For patients undergoing surgery, the preoperative nutritional condition directly affects postoperative prognosis, overall survival and disease-specific survival. Perioperative nutritional support enriched with immune-stimulating nutrients reduces overall complications and hospital stay but not mortality after major elective gastrointestinal surgery. Early enteral nutrition after surgery improves early and long-term postoperative nutritional status and reduces the length of hospitalization as well. Vitamin B12 and iron deficiency are common metabolic sequelae after gastrectomy and warrant appropriate replacement. In malnourished patients with advanced GC, short-term home complementary parenteral nutrition improves the quality of life, nutritional status and functional status. Total home parenteral nutrition represents the only modality of caloric intake for patients with advanced GC who are unable to take oral or enteral nutrition.
Practical implications: Early evaluations of nutritional status and nutritional support represent key aspects in the management of GC patients with both operable and advanced disease.
Keywords: Gastric cancer; Nutritional management.