Adjuvant role of traditional Chinese medicine in postoperative gastric cancer

Gastric cancer remains a global health challenge with high mortality. While surgery is the primary treatment, postoperative complications and recurrence significantly impact survival. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is increasingly utilized as an adjuvant therapy, yet its evidence base requires critical appraisal. Clinical trials suggest that adjuvant TCM formulations, such as Jianpi Yangzheng, may improve postoperative quality of life, alleviate chemotherapy-induced side effects (e.g. , nausea, fatigue), and potentially extend disease-free survival in specific cohorts. Mechanistically, bioactive compounds (e.g. , ginsenosides, astragaloside IV) appear to modulate immune responses and induce apoptosis via pathways including phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mechanistic target of rapamycin, though much evidence remains preclinical. TCM shows potential as an integrative approach for postoperative gastric cancer management. However, current evidence is limited by small sample sizes and heterogeneity in study designs. Future research must focus on rigorous, large-scale randomized controlled trials, standardized quality control of herbal formulations, and the evaluation of herb-drug interactions to establish its role in modern oncology.