Totally Laparoscopic Distal Gastrectomy VS Pylorus-Preserving Gastrectomy for Early Gastric Cancer in the Middle Stomach

With the development of laparoscopic technology, the surgical treatment of early gastric cancer (EGC) has shifted towards minimally invasive, precise, and function-preserving strategies. Totally laparoscopic distal gastrectomy (TLDG) and totally laparoscopic pylorus-preserving gastrectomy (TLPPG) are minimally invasive procedures. However, there is a lack of systematic evidence to directly compare their efficacies. This study focuses on two fully laparoscopic techniques, TLDG and TLPPG, to address two key objectives: (1) whether TLPPG can avoid the long-term functional sequelae of TLDG while ensuring oncological safety, including complications (delayed gastric emptying, reflux, and dumping syndrome), postoperative quality of life (assessed via the PGSAS-37 scale), and survival outcomes; and (2) the balance between complications and survival in function-preserving surgery. The findings aim to provide critical technical parameters for individualized surgical decision-making in EGC.