{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]],"date-time":"2026-09-30T13:59:00Z","timestamp":1790776740191,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,19]],"date-time":"2025-04-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1745020800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: The improved long-term survival of rectal cancer patients has led to a major increase in the prevalence of functional complications. Understanding which patients are prone to develop major LARS is important for their preoperative counselling and follow-up. Herein, we aimed to assess the risk factors for LARS. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study on rectal cancer patients. All patient and tumour variables, management plan, type of neoadjuvant therapy, radiation dose to anal sphincter, and perioperative outcomes were collected from the hospital electronic databases. We quantified LARS and compared the score before and after surgery (mean follow-up of 42.2 \u00b1 32 months). Results: A total of 182 patients were included for the final analysis. LARS was present in 43.4% (n = 79) of patients, with 14.8% (n = 27) having minor LARS and 28.5% (n = 52) having major LARS. Age (p = 0.03), male gender (p &lt; 0.00001), smoking (p = 0.04), neoadjuvant radiotherapy (p = 0.02), rectal stump length (p = 0.008), end-to-end anastomosis (p = 0.008), and ileostomy (p = 0.002) were found to significantly increase the rate of LARS. A logistic regression model based on the above variables was able to predict major LARS with good predictive value (AUC 0.700). Conclusions: LARS is highly common after sphincter-preserving surgery, and it is significantly more common in young, male patients with a history of smoking, having mid-lower rectal cancers with neoadjuvant radiotherapy, and undergoing TME surgery with end-to-end low anastomosis and ileostomy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm14082831","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,20]],"date-time":"2025-04-20T20:24:16Z","timestamp":1745180656000},"page":"2831","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["Predictive Risk Factors for Low Anterior Resection Syndrome (LARS) in Rectal Cancer\u2014An Observational Cohort Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9749-0610","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sorinel","family":"Lunca","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7767-0975","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Stefan","family":"Morarasu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Constantin","family":"Osman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fadi Al","family":"Shatarat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tudor","family":"Gramada","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Radiology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mara","family":"Razniceanu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Radiotherapy, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Monica","family":"Buzemurga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Radiotherapy, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Emanuel","family":"Baltig","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Radiotherapy, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Raluca","family":"Zaharia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wee Liam","family":"Ong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gabriel Mihail","family":"Dimofte","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"2nd Department of Surgical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology (IRO), 700483 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Surgery, Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy,  700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e230146","DOI":"10.1001\/jamasurg.2023.0146","article-title":"Long-term Quality of Life and Functional Outcome of Patients With Rectal Cancer Following a Watch-and-Wait Approach","volume":"158","author":"Custers","year":"2023","journal-title":"JAMA 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