This is a group of symptoms that develops when food moves too quickly from the stomach into the small bowel. You may have cramps, nausea, racing heart, sweating, bloating, diarrhoea or dizziness.
Dumping syndrome can develop after surgery to remove part or all of the stomach (for example, gastrectomy).
The symptoms can vary depending on what you eat. Foods and drinks high in sugar such as soft drinks, juices and cordial can make dumping syndrome worse. Symptoms may begin 15–30 minutes after eating, or sometimes after several hours. They often improve over time. Your treatment team can suggest changes to what you eat and medicines to help manage dumping syndrome.
For more on this, see Stomach and Oesophageal cancers.
→ READ MORE: Managing other types of bowel irritation
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Jacqueline Baker, Senior Oncology Dietitian, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, NSW; Lauren Atkins, Advanced Accredited Practising Dietitian, OnCore Nutrition, VIC; Dr Tsien Fua, Head and Neck Radiation Oncology Specialist, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Rosemerry Hodgkin, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council WA; Clare Hughes, Manager, Nutrition Unit, Cancer Council NSW; John Spurr, Consumer; Emma Vale, Senior Dietitian, GenesisCare, SA; David Wood, Consumer.
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