Background: This study was designed to assess postoperative changes in the quality of life (QoL) of patients after surgical treatment for pancreatic cancer.
Material and methods: QoL was analyzed in a prospective single-centre study that included 54 patients with pancreatic cancer. Patients with potentially resectable tumours underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) (n = 26), a double-bypass procedure (DBP) (n = 17) or laparotomy (L) (n = 11). They were asked to complete a questionnaire before and at 1, 2, 3 and 6 months after surgery. QoL was assessed using the EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-PAN26 questionnaires (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 and PAN26).
Results: The patients did not demonstrate significant differences in the assessment of their global health status. Although, after resection, patients gave a positive assessment of most parameters in question, after DBP they reported some aggravation of most of the symptoms. The majority of patients did not have aggravated symptoms after laparotomy.
Conclusions: The study has shown the value of conducting both curative and palliative resection for QoL. Bypass procedures should be performed in cases of non-resectable pancreatic cancer with accompanying jaundice and/or gastric outlet obstruction in patients with a life expectancy of at least 6 months.