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Getting the latest healthcare news for you
Getting the latest healthcare news for you
Preoperative steroids show no benefit for GI cancer surgery patients. A large randomized trial of ~1,200 patients found that a pre-surgery dose of methylprednisolone did not reduce major postoperative complications compared to placebo. Steroid recipients also saw more episodes of hyperglycemia — with no meaningful benefit to offset the risk.
Preoperative steroids show no benefit for GI cancer surgery patients
Surgeons have long hoped that giving corticosteroids before cancer surgery could tamp down the inflammatory response and reduce complications — but a new large randomized trial says otherwise. The multicenter, double-blind study, published in JAMA Surgery, found that a preoperative pulse dose of methylprednisolone offered no significant benefit over placebo in patients undergoing elective digestive cancer surgery.
Conducted across 23 French hospitals between 2019 and 2023, the trial enrolled 1,210 patients (mean age 65.9 years; 63% men). While steroid recipients showed meaningfully lower C-reactive protein (CRP) levels post-surgery — a marker of inflammation — this did not translate into fewer complications or shorter hospital stays.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: These findings directly challenge the rationale for routine preoperative steroid use in digestive cancer surgery. Clinicians should weigh the lack of benefit against real risks like hyperglycemia before incorporating this approach into standard practice.
