help about surgeries

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

I hope all are having a pain free day! I have a few questions. I posted about

3-4 weeks ago about seeing Dr. Lowy at the University of Cincinnati Hospital in

Cincinnati, Ohio, about having a TP/ICT. I had to have a liver biopsy, which

showed that my liver was over 80% fatty, which excludes me from being able to

have the islet cell transplantation. Therefore, I am faced with other options.

I could have the TP and be a brittle diabetic or I could have a Whipple. I have

been told that I have CP secondary to SOD and I have also been told that I have

congenital CP (my paternal grandfather died at age 51 from pancreatic cancer).

I have been thinking this weekend about these options. I was pretty well set on

having the Whipple, but after thinking about it this weekend I am afraid that I

will still have CP after the Whipple because part of my pancreas will still be

left. Does anyone know the chances of this, etc.????? I do not want to have a

TP and become a brittle diabetic. Will having the Whipple still give the

potential of getting pancreatic cancer????

I would greatly appreciate any and all information anyone can give me on this.

My thoughts and prayers are with you all!!

T. (Ohio)

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I think we have been in contact before. Just wanted to say that having a TP

without ICT doesn't necessarily mean you will have brittle diabetes. That is

the surgery that i had in 2000, and i wouldn't describe my diabetes as

brittle. My control isn't always perfect, but i don't have frequent high or low

blood sugars, and i don't have any long term complications.

I think, as far as the cancer risk is concerned, you would need to discuss

this with your doctor, but i would think, that, as the whipple doesn't remove

all the pancreas, there would still be some risk. Your doctor would be able to

tell you how significant the rsik is for you.

Good luck

Sue