Effect of Probiotic Supplements on Gastric Cancer Patients Receiving Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy

Background: Surgery can significantly improve the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer. However, some patients are at a later stage at diagnosis and need to receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT). Previous studies have shown that NACT may lead to more postoperative complications. Probiotics have the potential to reduce postoperative complications and infections, but no large sample, multicentre, randomized clinical trials have been conducted in patients with gastric cancer receiving NACT. The aim of this multicentre randomized controlled trial was to investigate the effect of probiotics on postoperative infections and other short-term outcomes in patients with gastric cancer receiving NACT. Methods/design: This study is a prospective, multicentre RCT. This experiment will consist of two groups - an experimental group and a control group - randomly divided in a 1:1 ratio. The experimental group will receive perioperative probiotic supplement and that of the control group will receive blank control management. An estimated 318 patients will be enrolled. The main endpoint for comparison is postoperative infections between the two groups.The experimental group patients received probiotic capsules containing Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Enterococcus faecalis.