Case Control Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Surg. Dec 27, 2023; 15(12): 2719-2726
Published online Dec 27, 2023. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v15.i12.2719
Multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment nutritional support intervention for gastrointestinal tumor radiotherapy: Impact on nutrition and quality of life
Lin Hui, Ying-Ying Zhang, Xiao-Dan Hu
Lin Hui, Head, Neck and Chest Radiotherapy Department 1, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214000, Jiangsu Province, China
Ying-Ying Zhang, Department of Gastroenterology, The People’s Hospital of Danyang, Danyang 212300, Jiangsu Province, China
Xiao-Dan Hu, Department of Gastroenterology, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214000, Jiangsu Province, China
Co-first authors: Lin Hui and Ying-Ying Zhang.
Author contributions: In this study, Hui L and Zhang YY made equal contributions as co first authors; Hu XD was designated as the corresponding author and assumed primary responsibility.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University.
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement—checklist of items.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Xiao-Dan Hu, MMed, Master's Student, Department of Gastroenterology, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University, No. 1000 Hefeng Road, Binhu District, Wuxi 214000, Jiangsu Province, China. 258636904@qq.com
Received: August 23, 2023
Peer-review started: August 23, 2023
First decision: September 13, 2023
Revised: September 19, 2023
Accepted: November 14, 2023
Article in press: November 14, 2023
Published online: December 27, 2023
Processing time: 126 Days and 3.2 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Gastrointestinal tumors account for a significant proportion of deaths from cancer-related diseases, and malnutrition aggravates the probability of toxic reactions, affecting the clinical outcome of patients and ultimately affecting their quality of life and survival prognosis. Multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment (MDT) refers to a patient-centered, multidisciplinary, team-based, comprehensive intervention and treatment plan for a particular disease, and previous studies have shown that MDT has a good clinical effect on the quality of life and nutritional status of patients.

Research motivation

This study provides a scientific basis for improving the clinical treatment effects, quality of life, and prognosis of patients with gastrointestinal tumors.

Research objectives

To explore the clinical effect of the MDT nutrition intervention model on patients with gastrointestinal tumors.

Research methods

Study participants were selected from among patients with gastrointestinal tumors who underwent chemotherapy in the Department of Oncology between January 2021 and January 2023. Patients were grouped using a random number table. A total of 120 study participants were randomly divided into MDT and control groups, with 60 study participants in each group. To analyze the effects of MDT on the nutritional status and quality of life of patients undergoing radiotherapy for gastrointestinal tumors by measuring their nutritional status and quality of life scores before and after treatment.

Research results

There was a significant decrease in the levels of albumin, transferrin, hemoglobin, and total protein after treatment, and the control group had significantly lower levels than the MDT group, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P < 0.05). However, after treatment, there were significantly more well-nourished patients in the MDT group than in the control group (P < 0.05). The total quality of life score, somatic functioning, role functioning, and emotional functioning in the MDT group were higher than those in the control group, and the pain, fatigue, nausea, and vomiting scores in the MDT group were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05).

Research conclusions

This case-control study was conducted to explore the clinical effects of the MDT nutritional intervention model on patients undergoing gastrointestinal tumor radiotherapy. The results showed that the MDT nutritional intervention model effectively improved the nutritional status and quality of life of patients.

Research perspectives

Future research should provide alternative treatment methods to improve the clinical quality of patients with cancer.