To Kimber, Mark, & all -Back home

[Guest guest]

First off, does our website still have something like the Member's Stories

section? I'd be

happy to recap some of the following into it for the possible use of anyone

who's

contemplating surgery on a big pancreatic psaudocyst like mine.

My story began with acute pancreatitis attack in May 2004, cause still unknown..

In the

hospital for 3 weeks mainly in ICU and 2 more weeks in convalesent hospital. I

was totally

unconscious for 2 weeks from shock and heavy sedation. Treatment was simply to

stop

oral food (NPO), supporting me on iv fluids, to give pancreas a rest. I was left

with 25% of

my original pancreas. 75% was dissolved (necrotized) by the powerful enzymes

that back

up when they cannot escape to the digestive tract. I also got what is referred

to as a

" giant " pseudocyst, which occurs ibn less than 3% of those who get such attacks.

Those

over 10 cm in diameter are defined as " giant " , and mine got as large as 15 x 16

x 14 cm.

That's over 6 inches around. In the following year, I had frequent flare-ups

of pain,

usually resolved in a few days by going to a liquid-only diet.

After scans and MRI showed the cyst continuing to grow, I elected to have

surgery to drain

it. Endoscopy had already established that this could not be done by ERCP due

to

compressed ducts, compressed duodenum, and large amount of debris within the

cyst.

I entered UCD hospital in Sacramento and had the surgery on Monday, 7/25/05,

I was glad it was possible for my surgeon to drain my cyst by making an opening

(anastoma) into my stomach, rather than using the more invasive

intestine-cutting Ruix-

en-Y method. I was expecting to go home the following Mon, when late Sat

evening I

began to throw up blood.. As the nurses inserted an NG tube and began pumping

it from

my stomach, I asked why no doctor was there, and all they would say was " the

resident has

been notified " . I don't know much medicine, but if I continued throwing up the

amounts I

was, I was convinced I would be dead in an hour or two. At that moment I had a

great

peace. I knew my death would be an emotional blow to my wife and family, but I

clearly

remember saying to the Lord, " It's O.K, I'll be coming to You, and this is a

quicker and less

painful way to die than I have seen my parents and others go through. " They

were able to

stop the flow, I went into Intensive Care Unit, got several blood transfusions,

and when

endoscopy failed to disclose the problem, they went in through my leg artery and

sealed

two arteries that were bleeding. And that while I was totally awake watching

the

procedure on their video. Amazing what med. science can do today. Later I said

to

myself, just as in some previous trials, this has strengthened my faith. If you

go through

this, and you are still sure you belong to Christ, what in this world could

shake that faith?

Nothing.

I came home Fri 8/7. I lost another 20 lbs in these 2 weeks. I was already thin

enough

from my 2004 stay, so I hope to gain that back over the next months. It remains

to be

seen, of course, whether this will reduce or eliminate my pain attacks, since

there was no

way to know how much was due to the cyst.

Special thanks to Kimber for your comforting phone call, and for the thoughts

and prayers

many of you others promised.

Kurt

[Guest guest]

Kurt,

I am glad that they found out what the problem was and were able to fix

it. I hope you are feeling better these days with the cyst drained.

Kimber

--

Kimber

Vallejo, CA

hominid2@...

Note: All advice given is personal opinion, not equal to that of a licensed

physician or health care professional.