Altered Preoperative Nutritional Status in Colorectal Cancer: A Not So Infrequent Issue

Abstract EN

Introduction.

Malnutrition and weight loss in cancer patients is a common problem that affects the prognosis of the disease.

In the case of CRC, malnutrition rates range between 30 and 60%.

Objectives.

Description of the preoperative nutritional status of patients diagnosed with colorectal neoplasia who will undergo surgery.

Materials and Methods.

A prospective observational study is performed.

Results.

Of 234 patients studied, we observed that 139 (59%) had some degree of nutritional risk.

Of all of them, 44.9% (N = 47) had 1-2 points according to MUST and 25% (N = 27) had more than 2 points.

No differences were found when studying nutritional risk according to the location of the neoplasm.

It was observed that 2.15% of the patients were underweight, 51% overweight, and 23% obese.

19.4% of patients lost less than 5 kg in the 3–6 months prior to diagnosis, 20.7% lost between 5 and 10 kg, and 2.1% lost more than 10 kg.

In asymptomatic patients, the weight loss was lower than in symptomatic patients, loss <5 kg, 8.2% vs.

22.8%, and loss 5–10 kg, 16.2% vs.

29.3%, with a value of p=0.016.

5% (N = 7) of the patients had hypoalbuminemia record.

16.5% (N = 23) had some degree of prealbumin deficiency and 20.9% (N = 29) of hypoproteinemia.

Symptomatic patients had more frequent analytical alterations, 1-2 altered parameters in 48.8% (N = 20) of asymptomatic vs.

61.2% (N = 22) in the symptomatic, p=0.049.