Re: whipple

[Guest guest]

Good morning everyone -

Someone asked me a very good question. Why have a whipple instead of waiting

for pancreas burnout/pancreas removal with ICT? I thought I would share my

point of view.

I have been told from many folks with this disease to treat " sooner rather

than later. " I have been in internet support groups for nearly four/five years

and have done lots of research. Most everyone said " don't wait until you are

so bad that you can't get good results from surgery. " I know that some people

have rapid onset of CP and do not have the chance to do surgery " before

things get worse. " I was VERY fortunate to have no pain between acute

pancreatitis

attacks, function " normal " between attacks, and have " minimal " damage from

the attacks. I have communicated with many pancreatitis sufferers that had

their pancreas virtually destroyed with one attack. I think that is the

craziness

of this disease. NO ONE KNOWS how it will progress. Each case is unique.

Treatment choice is (and has to be) an individual decision. I know my local

GI thought the whipple was too invasive right now. He was proved wrong, when

the surgeon opened me up and saw how damaged the head of my pancreas was. He

was initially going to do a Puestow, but had to call my husband in the waiting

room to get permission to do the whipple after an hour into surgery.

The thought of having a longer life, living pain-free, and having NO MORE

ATTACKS with multiple hospitalizations drove me to choose this very serious

surgery. I knew I was a good candidate as I was otherwise healthy, fit (I still

was

able to workout 3 - 5 days a week in between attacks), slim, and 50.

Complications occur with age, obesity, and being on pain meds for several

years/months/weeks.

I don't know if I am cured " for life. " I have an internet friend that had a

whipple and did fine for ten years, then the pancreatitis returned with a

vengeance. Life is full of risks, I just knew I had to do something now.

I hope my sharing " my " feelings and thought processes helped. Ultimately,

one must decide for him or herself.

Cecilia

Mesa, AZ

[Guest guest]

Patty -

I have had a successful whipple on 11/24/04. I have posted a few times

concerning my recovery and will be happy to e-mail more details if you desire.

I

had a few complications, but am back to work full-time, no pain, and no

attacks. I also had pancreas divisum and had 25% of my pancreas removed. I was

VERY

lucky that ALL the damage was in the area that was removed and all the tissue

left was VERY healthy. I had the piloris preserving surgery as it was

recommended by my GI. Of course, my duodenum was removed and other organs

" rearranged " and I was also able to keep my spleen.

Cecilia

Mesa, AZ

[Guest guest]

Wow, Cecilia you were fortunate to say the least! I am so glad to

hear that your Whipple was succesfully performed and that you have

recovered to the point that you can now return to work. That was

what I was after the entire time too, but unfortunately my Pancreas

Divisum must have caused more damage to my Pancreas over time and so

90% of mine was

removed along with the majority of my stomach. I was lucky in one

respect though, the surgeon was able to " save " my Spleen. This was

very important to me since I know how critical that organ is towards

fighting infections.

Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for writing to us about your

successful Whipple. There are many others in the Group who are still

grappling with the decision as to whether this surgery would be

beneficial to their particular problems. Too often we get caught up

in

telling our " horror-stories " about our surgery/recovery without

really realizing that this

actually may be causing a disservice to those of members of the Group

who are still seeking answers.

It is just as important, if not more so, that they too hear of those

cases like yourself whereby the individual is able to go back and

lead a fairly normal life post-op.

Take care of yourself and thanks for the words of encouragement, even

if it doesn't apply to me directly.

Andre'

> Patty -

>

> I have had a successful whipple on 11/24/04. I have posted a few

times

> concerning my recovery and will be happy to e-mail more details if

you desire. I

> had a few complications, but am back to work full-time, no pain,

and no

> attacks. I also had pancreas divisum and had 25% of my pancreas

removed. I was VERY

> lucky that ALL the damage was in the area that was removed and all

the tissue

> left was VERY healthy. I had the piloris preserving surgery as it

was

> recommended by my GI. Of course, my duodenum was removed and other

organs

> " rearranged " and I was also able to keep my spleen.

>

> Cecilia

> Mesa, AZ

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Cecilia,

I would love to know the specifics of your procedure. How long you were in the

hospital? If you stayed in ICU or CCU and how long? How many tubes you had

such at picc line, central line, feeding tube drain tubes, ect..... How long you

were off work?

Thanks

Patty

[Guest guest]

-

I had the whipple 11/24/04. All my damage was located in 25% of the head. I

only had to have it removed. My surgeon assured me that he was very pleased

with the remaining part of the pancreas. He said it was extremely healthy

with no damage.

As Sue also said, each case is different. Your surgeon will be able to tell

you his opinion, but until he/she opens you up he/she does not really know

what the damage is and how it can be fixed.

I don't know if long term I will avoid pancreatitis. I know that the damage

is gone. I will still avoid alcohol, control my diet (low fat, low carb,

healthy whole grains and mostly organic), try and exercise and stay fit. There

is

one person that posts on this board that went symptom free for I believe 14

years after his whipple before CP came back.

My CP was most likely due to pancreas divisum. That no longer is an issue

since the defective ducts were removed. I am hoping for the best. So far so

good.

Cecilia

Mesa, AZ