Impact of Roux-En-Y Pouch Reconstruction Compared With Conventional Roux-En-Y Reconstruction on Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients Undergoing Total Gastrectomy for Adenocarcinoma

This study is being done to learn more about how different surgery procedures bring back the eating pathway after removing the stomach in patients with stomach cancer. If the surgeon has decided that some, or all, of the patient's stomach must be removed the surgeon must create a new way to allow food to travel from the mouth to the intestines. Some patients develop problems because they are missing their stomach, such as lack of hunger, bloating, cramping, and heartburn. The surgeons at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center are conducting a study to determine if a change in surgery can help reduce these symptoms. The most common method of creating a way for food is called a "Roux-en-Y", in which one part of the intestine is connected with the end of the esophagus (the swallowing tube) in the abdomen, and another connection is made between the intestines lower down. The change in surgery involves creating a pouch from a part of the intestines to replace the stomach. This study will compare the effects, good and/or bad, of gastric pouch reconstruction with the usual reconstruction to see if the pouch makes you feel better overall. This type of surgery has been used by some surgeons for many years and is known to be safe, but it is not known if it reduces symptoms or improves nutrition compared with the usual surgery.