Post-surgery weight changes in pancreatic cancer - a prospective study on factors and survival impact

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by Noah

Postoperative weight loss is a common complication after pancreatic cancer surgery, yet the key drivers of weight restoration or persistent loss—and their effects on overall survival—remain unclear. This prospective study followed 186 consecutive primary pancreatic cancer patients, tracking body weight preoperatively and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery. Patients were grouped by 12-month weight-change tertiles, with regression identifying predictors and survival analyses assessing prognostic impact.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Weight loss after pancreatic cancer surgery

Methods

Patient enrollment and follow-up schedule

Weight-change grouping and analyses

Results

Rate of weight restoration and median changes

Predictors of weight restoration and persistent loss

Association with overall survival

Conclusion

Cui etal. World Journal of Surgical Oncology (2026) 24:74 [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12957-026-04202-z](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12957-026-04202-z) World Journal of Surgical Oncology RESEARCH Open Access Post-surgery weight changes in pancreatic cancer: a prospective study on factors and survival impact Lei Cui1, Liping Zhang1, Huiping Yu1, Qingmei Sun1, Kuirong Jiang1, Jishu Wei1*† and Xiaoping Fang1*† Abstract Introduction Weight loss is a prevalent complication after pancreatic cancer surgery. The primary objective of this study is to pinpoint the key predictors of weight restoration and persistent weight loss subsequent to pancreatic cancer surgery and to evaluate their effects on overall survival. Methods Between February 2022 and November 2022, we prospectively enrolled 186 consecutive patients undergoing surgery for primary pancreatic cancer. Body weight was systematically recorded preoperatively and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Patients were classified into three categories according to 12-month postoperative weight change tertiles: weight restoration, intermediate, and persistent weight loss. Regression analyses identified factors influencing weight change, and survival analyses assessed its impact on overall survival. Results Only 22 . 6% of patients regained or exceeded their preoperative weight by 12 months post-surgery. The median percentage of weight change at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months post-surgery was − 5 . 5%, -8 . 0%, -8 . 3%, and − 7 . 8%, respectively. Weight restoration was linked to diabetes and no vascular resection, while paradoxically also to lower preoperative hemoglobin and intra-abdominal infection. Conversely, persistent weight loss was significantly predicted by higher preoperative body mass index, elevated CA-199, combined vascular resection, and advanced TNM stage. Lower glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) was also associated with weight loss, though this finding requires cautious interpretation. Postoperative weight change was significantly correlated with overall survival. Conclusion Monitoring weight changes after surgery is crucial as they are closely associated with various clinical factors and significantly impact overall survivals, thus deserving attention in the comprehensive management of pancreatic cancer patients. Keywords Influencing factors, Pancreatic cancer, Pancreatectomy, Survival, Weight loss, Quality of life †Jishu Wei and Xiaoping Fang contributed equally to this work and are considered as joint corresponding authors. *Correspondence: Jishu Wei [weijishu@njmu.edu.cn](weijishu@njmu.edu.cn)[ ](weijishu@njmu.edu.cn)Xiaoping Fang[fxp84284@163.com](fxp84284@163.com) 1Department of General Surgery, Pancreas Center, the First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, No.300 Guangzhou Road, Gulou District, Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China © The Author(s) 2026. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this licence to share adapted material derived from this article or parts of it. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit [http://creati](http://creati)[vecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/](vecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.)[.](vecommons.org/

FAQs

What is the primary objective of this prospective study?

To identify key predictors of weight restoration and persistent weight loss after pancreatic cancer surgery and to evaluate their effects on overall survival.

How were patients classified in the study?

Patients were grouped into three categories based on the tertiles of 12-month postoperative weight change: weight restoration, intermediate, and persistent weight loss.

Which factors were linked to weight restoration versus persistent weight loss?

Weight restoration was associated with diabetes and no vascular resection, but also with lower preoperative hemoglobin and intra-abdominal infection. Persistent weight loss was predicted by higher preoperative BMI, elevated CA-199, combined vascular resection, and advanced TNM stage.

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by Noah