Analyzing quality of life after low anterior resection for rectal cancer

Rectal cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide that imposes high costs on patients and the healthcare system while also having a significant impact on the patient’s quality of life (QoL).

We aimed to assess the QoL of rectal cancer patients undergoing lower anterior resection (LAR) and evaluate potential confounding factors.

In this cross-sectional study, we included patients undergoing neo-adjuvant chemotherapy followed by LAR, diverting ileostomy, and adjuvant chemotherapy. Six months after stoma reversal, QoL was assessed using a cancer-specific core questionnaire EORTC QLQ-C30 and also a colorectal cancer module EORTC QLQ-CR29. Linear and quantile regression models were used to examine associations of QoL and patients’ demographical and clinical features.

The study population comprised 210 patients with an average age of 61.9 ± 11.0 (range: 37–85) and 112 (53.3%) male patients. The higher tumor stage increases the QoL of patients by reducing diarrhea, loss of appetite, defecation problems, and stool frequency. Based on the linear regression analysis, a farther distance of the anastomosis from the anal verge (AV) was correlated with lower symptom scores and higher QoL. Also, at the 75th percentile cut-off of the QLQ-CR29 scores, a higher N stage of the tumor was correlated with higher QoL based on functional subscale (coefficient = 3.032, P = 0.016).

QoL of patients after LAR for rectal cancer is significantly associated with the distance of the anastomosis site from the AV.