Is radiation therapy still needed after chemotherapy following gastric cancer surgery?

Generally, whether radiotherapy is needed after gastric cancer surgery mainly depends on the patient's specific medical condition and physical status. Patients with locally advanced gastric cancer or recurrent/metastatic gastric cancer may require radiotherapy, while those with early-stage gastric cancer may not. If discomfort symptoms occur, it is recommended to seek timely medical consultation at a hospital and undergo standardized treatment under the guidance of a physician. Detailed analysis is as follows:

For patients with locally advanced gastric cancer, especially those with deep tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis, or other high-risk factors such as large tumor size or high malignancy, postoperative radiotherapy can kill or inhibit residual cancer cells and reduce the risk of recurrence. For patients with recurrent or metastatic gastric cancer, radiotherapy can also serve as a local treatment option to target metastatic cancer cells.

For patients with early-stage gastric cancer without evidence of lymph node metastasis, the tumor tissue is usually localized and can be completely removed through surgery; thus, adjuvant radiotherapy is generally unnecessary. If a patient's physical condition is poor and they cannot tolerate side effects of radiotherapy, such as skin damage or radiation pneumonitis, or if there are contraindications to radiotherapy, then radiotherapy should not be performed.

It is recommended to actively follow the treatment advice of physicians, maintain a positive mindset, and adopt healthy lifestyle habits to improve treatment outcomes and quality of life.