Abstract

Since quality of life is considered to be an important aspect in surgical patients, the concept of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery, also known as Fast-track surgery, has come from the sum of multimodal efforts to minimize patient surgical stress and to enhance recovery. This article reviews the various reported results about Enhanced Recovery After Surgery for gastric cancer surgery patients. There are many techniques that together are collectively known as Enhanced Recovery After Surgery, which include no bowel preparation, no prolonged fasting, no nasogastric tube, no prophylactic drain, early removal of the catheter, and short-term use of prophylactic antibiotics. Some studies report good results in that the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery program does not increase morbidity, and some other studies report that morbidity is even reduced. The postoperative hospital stay which represents patient recovery is also reduced, and the re-admission rate does not increase. But the number of reports about the clinical effects of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery in the field of gastric cancer surgery is small, and there is also no consensus about that as in colorectal surgery. Enhanced Recovery After Surgery for gastric cancer surgery patients is an important concept to improve the surgical outcome and the quality of life in gastric cancer patients. Further research is needed to improve the clinical effect of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery in the field of gastric cancer surgery and also a consensus must be established about the clinical effects of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery techniques. (SMN 2011;2:45-51)

• Keywords: Gastric cancer, Enhanced Recovery After Surgery, Fast-track Surgery, Quality Of Life (QOL)