Korean Medicine Treatment for Nausea and Reduced Oral Intake in a Patient after Gastrectomy and Adjuvant Chemotherapy: A Case Report

Objectives: To describe Korean medicine treatment for nausea and reduced oral intake persisting after gastrectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy.Methods: A 66-year-old woman with persistent nausea and reduced oral intake after distal gastrectomy, whose adjuvant S-1 chemotherapy had been discontinued, received herbal medicines (<i>Saengmaek-san, Banhabaekchulchunma-tang, Bojungikgi-tang</i>), acupuncture, electroacupuncture, moxibustion, and cupping for 16 days alongside supplemental parenteral nutrition and prokinetics. Outcomes included the M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI), EORTC QLQ-C30, QLQ-STO22, and the Scale for Stomach Qi Deficiency Pattern (SSQD).Results: Vomiting resolved by day 5, and appetite recovered from 20% to 90% of the premorbid level. MDASI symptom scores decreased from 2.9 to 1.2, the QLQ-C30 appetite-loss score decreased from 100.0 to 0.0, and SSQD decreased from 35 to 20. Grade 2 neutropenia of undetermined causality occurred and resolved after discharge; body weight continued to decline.Conclusion: Complex Korean medicine treatment may be a useful adjunct for persistent postgastrectomy nausea, although its independent contribution could not be established.