Dear Bert

[Guest guest]

Dear Bert,

I'm so pleased to hear some more of your news. Thanks for the

message. You were so helpful when I was thinking about the TP last

year.

I'm sorry about the severe diabetes and I do hope you will get it

sorted. I don't know much about this but just possibly callibrating

the pump would be easier than what is happening now. The diabetes

risk is a big downside to the TP but I don't think you could have

gone on as you were, could you?

I'm equally sorry about the work/finance problems. This must be very

disheartening. I hope that you soon become well enough to undertake

work but I know that the loss of allowances can make it not

worthwhile. Is there a limit you can earn which doesn't affect

allowances? I just get the feeling you'd like to do some work if

you could. It's inexplicable why some of us are asked go through

what we do. No easy answers.

I know I'm fortunate in that, at 59, I could retire any time I want

to, with a teacher's pension only very slightly reduced from what

I'd get at 60. I also know how important the work itself is to me so

I do sympathise when people are forced to give up work.

Here's hoping and praying that things improve but you sound as if,

despite everything, you are keeping up your spirits for better times

ahead and enjoying significant pain-free periods. May they continue

and extend!

Did I mention in my last post that my surgery is shelved for the

moment and I am taking part in a research project at Liverpool

University to look at ways of monitoring for pre-cancerous changes

in the pancreas? They did an EUS, a CT scan and an ERCP in the last

few months. During the ERCP they extracted juice to analyse for

mutations in the K-ras, P6 and P15 genes. The K-ras one was positive

but often is in older patients and/or in patients with CP. The other

two, which seem to be the most significant ones, were negative. I'll

have an annual EUS but the other two tests will be less frequent,

for obvious reasons. I was lucky in that the ERCP caused only

relatively mild increased pain for about a week afterwards. The last

time I had one in 1988, I was in agony for a few days. The technique

was pretty new then, of course. This time the endoscopist put in a

stent to help drainage and reduce the risk of post-ERCP AP. It

worked and he took the stent out a couple of weeks later.

It's also been decided that I do have coeliac disease as well as CP.

I think there was a question mark about this when you were last

posting regularly. This means a gluten-free diet (strictly no wheat

products whatsoever)as well as low fat, no-alcohol etc. etc! As yet

I am fortunate in not being diabetic but the docs expect this to

happen soon.

You must find it difficult to devise an appetising diet to fit in

with diabates as well as lack of pancreatic digestive function?

Anyway, it's lovely to hear from you. Thanks again for all the help

and advice you gave me last year and I wish you every blessing.

Fliss (UK)