Clinical-morphological assessment of endoscopic laser therapy for gastric cancer patients in short-term period after distal subtotal resection

The study included 78 patients who underwent subtotal distal resections for gastric cancer. Forty-four patients received postoperative endoscopic lasertherapy and 34 patients were treated with drug therapy. Endoscopic examination and morphologic analysis of biopsy specimens from gastrointestinal anastomosis area and mucosa of stomach stump were performed. The analysis of data obtained showed that drug therapy resulted in elimination of inflammation of gastric mucosa and anastomosis area for a short period of time but failed to prevent from the development and progression of atrophic processes in the resected stomach. As concerns the endoscopic lasertherapy, it not only stabilized epithelial integument and considerably reduced inflammatory processes in stroma but also slowed down the processes in mucosa reorganization that was shown in the absence of atrophic processes within one year.