What is gastrectomy surgery
Isabella Turner
Updated on March 26, 2026
A gastrectomy is a medical procedure where all or part of the stomach is surgically removed.
What happens in gastrectomy?
When diagnosed with stomach cancer, your recommended treatment may be a partial or total removal of the stomach, called a gastrectomy. During a partial gastrectomy, a portion, usually the lower half, of the stomach is removed and the small intestine is connected to the remaining section of the stomach.
How is a gastrectomy performed?
A partial or total gastrectomy can be performed as an open surgery or laparoscopically. Open: With this approach, the stomach is removed through a single large incision made in the abdomen. Laparoscopic: With this minimally invasive approach, multiple tiny incisions are made in the abdomen.
How long can you live after gastrectomy?
Five-year overall survival and disease-free survival was 61% and 60% for group A, 50% and 43% for group B respectively. Gastrectomy should be carefully considered in patients 70 years old and can be justified with low mortality and acceptable long-term outcomes.How long does gastrectomy surgery take?
What Happens in a Gastrectomy? You’ll need to go to the hospital for a gastrectomy. It can take between 4 to 5 hours if the doctor makes a large incision (a cut) to remove your stomach. Or they can make several small cuts, called laparoscopic gastrectomy.
Can you live a long life without a stomach?
It may be surprising to learn a person can live without a stomach. But the body is able to bypass the stomach’s main function of storing and breaking down food to gradually pass to the intestines. Absent a stomach, food consumed in small quantities can move directly from the esophagus to the small intestine.
Is gastrectomy a major surgery?
A gastrectomy is a major operation, so recovery can take a long time. You’ll usually stay in hospital for 1 or 2 weeks after the procedure, where you may receive nutrition directly into a vein until you can eat and drink again. You’ll eventually be able to digest most foods and liquids.
What are the complications of gastrectomy?
- wound infection.
- leaking from a join made during surgery.
- stricture – where stomach acid leaks up into your oesophagus and causes scarring, leading to the oesophagus becoming narrow and constricted over time.
- chest infection.
- internal bleeding.
- blockage of the small intestine.
Does the stomach grow back?
The stomach is built to stretch when food enters. When the stomach reaches capacity, it alerts your body that it’s full so you will stop eating. When a person overeats, the stomach stretches even more to accommodate the extra food. If this is a rare occurrence, the stomach will simply shrink back to the previous size.
When is a gastrectomy needed?Gastrectomy is used to treat stomach problems that aren’t helped by other treatments. Your doctor may recommend a gastrectomy to treat: benign, or noncancerous, tumors. bleeding.
Article first time published onWhy do people get gastrectomy surgery?
Gastrectomy is a surgery that’s done to treat stomach cancer. During your gastrectomy, your surgeon may remove part or all of your stomach.
How do you eat if your stomach is removed?
- Start with 6 or more small meals daily. …
- Chew your food well. …
- Eat slowly. …
- Sit upright during meals.
- Have your last meal of the day at least 2 hours before bedtime.
- Don’t have more than 4 ounces (½ cup) of liquid with your meals. …
- Include protein with each meal.
How much is gastrectomy surgery?
The average cost of gastric bypass surgery is $23,000, the average cost of lap band is $14,500, and the average cost of sleeve gastrectomy surgery is $14,900. So before getting too involved, spend time determining if your insurance will cover weight loss surgery.
Can you drink alcohol after a gastrectomy?
Avoid alcohol for the first six months after bariatric surgery. When you get permission to start drinking alcohol again, avoid carbonated beverages and sugary drink mixers. Remember that after surgery, even small amounts of alcohol can cause intoxication and low blood sugar.
Can you replace stomach?
A stomach transplant is a surgical procedure to replace a diseased stomach with a healthy donor match from a deceased person. Stomach transplantation is not normally done by itself but in combination with other abdominal organs. A multivisceral transplant is a procedure that involves replacing the: stomach.
Who performs gastrectomy?
Who performs a gastrectomy? The following specialists perform gastrectomies: General surgeons specialize in the surgical treatment of diseases of the abdomen, including appendicitis, hernia, and gallbladder, stomach and intestinal diseases. Surgical oncologists specialize in the surgical treatment of cancer.
How long can you live after esophagectomy?
The survival rates after transthoracic or transhiatal esophagectomy were respectively 31.2% and 27.8% by 5 years, and 21.3% and 16.6% by 10 years, and the median time of survival after transthoracic or transhiatal esophagectomy was 20.5 months (95% CI: 10.4–57.6) and 16.4 months (95% CI: 10.6–28.7), respectively.
What can I expect after an esophagectomy?
Patients should expect six to eight weeks of recovery and adjustment in eating patterns after the procedure. Most patients benefit from eating smaller, more frequent meals after esophagectomy. In addition, patients may benefit from sleeping slightly elevated on pillows or a small wedge.
What can you not eat after stomach surgery?
- Breads.
- Carbonated drinks.
- Raw vegetables.
- Cooked fibrous vegetables, such as celery, broccoli, corn or cabbage.
- Tough meats or meats with gristle.
- Red meat.
- Fried foods.
- Highly seasoned or spicy foods.
Does popcorn stretch your stomach?
Popcorn is healthy and filling, but after gastric bypass it can take up space in your stomach and be difficult to digest.
Can I drink Diet Coke after gastric sleeve?
You’re not allowed any carbonated beverages for the first month after gastric sleeve surgery. This is because carbonation can seriously upset your stomach when consumed so soon after surgery. Not only that, but the bloating puts pressure on the incision.
What is life like after a gastrectomy?
For total gastrectomy, patients can expect to: Spend five to eight days in the hospital after surgery. Lose weight for at least two months. Adjust to a new dietary “normal” over the next several months, as the digestive system heals.
Can you live without a pyloric sphincter?
Gastrectomies that result in removal of the pylorus/plyroic valve can allow food to move into the upper part of the small intestine (the duodenum) very rapidly. The absence of the pyloric valve combined with removal of the stomach (resulting in no “storage area ” for digestion) can cause “dumping syndrome”.
What functions are lost with a total gastrectomy?
Abnormal food transit, disturbed nutrition intake, abnormal digestion and absorption, disturbed protein and amino acid homeostasis, deficiencies of macro- and microelements and vitamins, as well as impaired hormone secretion and impaired gastric-hypothalamic-pituitary axis (GHPA) functions are the most important …
Do you lose weight after stomach removal?
Many people who have this surgery lose weight because they eat much less than they did before. Keep healthy, high-calorie snacks around, such as peanut butter and crackers or cheese and crackers. Try to eat a variety of foods to make sure you get all the nutrition you need.
How can I gain weight after a gastrectomy?
- Eat calorie dense foods. Make every bite and sip count by eating calorie dense foods. …
- Eat a variety of foods. …
- Eat small frequent meals – six to eight times per day. …
- Add calories whenever possible. …
- Drink only nutritious beverages. …
- Think of food as medicine.
What are the side effects of a gastric sleeve?
- Blood clots.
- Gallstones (risk increases with rapid or. substantial weight loss)
- Hernia.
- Internal bleeding or profuse bleeding of the. surgical wound.
- Leakage.
- Perforation of stomach or intestines.
- Skin separation.
- Stricture.
What is gastric dumping?
Dumping syndrome is a medical condition in which your stomach empties its contents into the first part of your small intestine (the duodenum) faster than normal. Dumping syndrome is also known as rapid gastric emptying. People with dumping syndrome experience symptoms like nausea and abdominal cramping.