Sue Widemarks Comments...

[Guest guest]

Thank you so much for posting this. I ran across Sue's website BEFORE

having my MGB, and she had comments on all of the different types of

surgery. It seemed to me then that she was more worried about some of

the other types of surgery than she was about the MGB. She did state

that the " mini " description that Dr. R uses does not seem accurate

because even though it is a less invasive surgery than some, it is

still a major surgey. I remember thinking at the time that even

though some of her comments on the way that the MGB was done seemed

incorrect, she had been quite fair about the surgery. I'm glad that

she has spent some time reading Dr. R's site and has concluded that

she thinks that Dr. R is a very informative surgeon. She is so

correct in stating that many surgeons do not furnish any information

on how they perform their surgeries or the possible complications.

This is exactly the reason that I decided on the MGB. I read list

after list of patients who had other types of surgery and had

complications to some degree. Then I would go back to the MGB list

and read how happy the post-ops were, some posting just days or hours

after their surgeries. It did not take long to decide that the MGB

was the surgery for me. Now at nearly two months post-op and 47

pounds lost, I have to say that I indeed made the correct decision

for me. Thank you Sue for opening your mind to the possibility that

Dr. R is the caring surgeon that we happy post-ops feel that he is.

Stormy MGB 8/11/00 Down 47 pounds!

> Hello All,

>

> I am one of those post-ops who is still

> subscribed to LT's site. I signed up in the beginning

> to see what she was stating, now I guess it is more

> like gawking at an accident scene. Sorry! LOL.

>

> Anyway, I do not feel that I am a Dr. R Moonie or

> whatever terms uses to 'disqualify' our

> statements regarding out opinions about the MGB.

>

> I for one researched all aspects of WLS and

> determined the MGB was the safest, and best procedure

> for me. After reading even more and researching, I

> still feel that way! I had my MGB on 3/13/00 and have

> lost over 80 lbs. I no longer have severe acid

> reflux, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, achy

> joints. I don't vomit unless I really, really

> overstuff myself - rare. And I don't do Citrucel -

> but promise to start again. I can eat anything I want

> - unfortunately!! LOL. I have never dumped and I

> belong (at times) to the orange group.

>

> What I am pasting here is an email from someone

> who has been emailing quite a bit to the 'truth' list.

> But, she went to some of the sites Dr. R. listed for

> us to view and here are her comments to LT:

>

> ****************************************************

> Message: 23

> Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 09:50:51 -0700

> From: " Sue Widemark "

> Subject: Re: A reply from Dr. R - fact finding

>

> I hope I don't make EVERYONE on this list hate me but

> I went to some of the links below and the explanations

> seemed a valid rebuttal. I am wondering if the

> surgeons website may in part, be because Dr R is very

> honest about the MGB and all WLS being risky and the

> surgeons are worried that knowing the honest facts

> about WLS will deter prospectives in general. Because

> I have not noticed them taking a website out against

> known quacks in the field (I won't mention any names

> here but one real butcher everyone knows about comes

> to

> mind, who is STILL performing procedures). In my

> research, it's been my experience that most surgeons

> sites I've seen, really understate the dangers

> involved with WLS and what risks they state, are given

> are in thick medical terminology that prospectives

> won't bother to read. That's one thing I really

> liked about Dr R's site that he was so honest about

> the risks. I linked his 'risks' page to my site - it

> agrees with everything else I've read in the

> medical literature in general about WLS.

>

> He states that he has a real concern about the dangers

> of ulcer and strictures with the RNY and that's why he

> does the Billroth II. I have written to him inquiring

> for cites of studies showing these dangers are greater

> in RNY's.

>

> In fairness to him, he must believe in the Billroth II

> in order to have chosen it. It is to his advantage to

> do the procedure with the least side effects and

> the least bad problems because bad problems tend to

> turn into nasty law suits. I knew an anesthesiologist

> who was present at a death which was proven to be

> 'his fault' But in fact, it was a rare thing which

> happens and wasn't really his fault at all. A young

> handsome man with blond hair (I can still see his

> face), his career was over in a flash. I had him in

> my fiddle class and the man could literally not work

> as a doctor from ONE very nasty lawsuit. All

> physicians have heard these horror stories so it's to

> their advantage to try and do - what they feel is -

> the best procedure.

>

> Usually physicians tend to have a 'professional

> courtesy' towards other physicians yet the MGB dot.com

> website goes in opposition to this. And one

> might say that this is because these physicians are so

> upset that Dr R is doing this horrible procedure. I

> would like to believe that but I have seen

> 'professional courtesy' to real quacks like 70 year

> old abortionists who have, out of proven negligence,

> killed patients, for example (one gent comes to mind

> who ate his lunch while a patient bled out in another

> room and told the nurses to not bother him - he

> eventually lost his license but in such a way that he

> still can practice in other states - he's over 70

> years old). I have also seen the medical community

> totally slander and character assassinate those

> whom they think are stealing business. In fact, this

> is happening on a wide scale at present, with nurse

> practitioners and it's not pretty and it's not

> fair and many of us feel that it's not because of

> anything else but that some folks are seeing that NPs

> are delivering a holistic type of empirical medical

> care which patients love and which has a high rate of

> efficacy as far as the healing process.

>

> Operating with an extremely limited medical knowledge

> (and it ARE limited... although I did study thoroughly

> in medical literature the procedures I feature in my

> site including in medical A & P books and more and

> have researched this well over a year rather

> intensely), it seems to me that:

>

> 1. Dr R. is performing a procedure which is NOT any

> MORE dangerous or risky than other types of RNY. It's

> just that the dangers of RNYs are generally not

> detailed on websites.

>

> 2. Dr R. may be performing something safer than an RNY

> because it seems, in part, a procedure still done to

> non weight loss oriented patients and from my

> own experience, people of size are still the most

> abused segment of this population - thus receiving

> surgery that non fat people receive may be an

> advantage.

>

> 3. Dr R's procedure may APPEAR more dangerous than

> other types of WLS because Dr R is so open about the

> risks.

>

> I am asking these questions openly. There is a lot at

> stake. First, individuals who have received this

> procedure may NOT be worse off than those receiving

> other types of WLS. WLS is risky and those going into

> it should be aware of that - this lack of awareness on

> the part of pre ops has long been a concern of mine.

> Second, this upset about the MGB might be fueled at

> least in part by something other than 'professional

> concern' - not to repeat but to emphasize, I have seen

> it happen before in the medical community.

>

> It is so difficult for us, laypersons to figure out

> exactly what is happening when talking of highly

> complex things. Just think if I launched a discussion

> of intricate software development concepts here how

> lost everyone would be? These scientific things

> involve so much learning - all medical providers go to

> intense schooling for many years and equally intense

> practicum.

>

> When I began studying the GI tract via medical books,

> my son told me " You will not even begin to scratch the

> surface of understanding this " . He was SO right.

> That is why he IS the advisor for my Health site and

> why I run everything by him. The best we can hope for

> is a surgeon who is honest enough to tell us the full

> story and that we can figure out enough to ask the

> 'right questions' before we have a procedure done. I

> to this date, am not convinced that Dr R is NOT

> trustworthy. Yes he has made some tactical errors in

> dealing with this situation but that just shows he's

> not a politician. However, people hire Dr R for his

> medical ability and not his political correctness (or

> lack thereof). Need I remind of certain politicians

> who ARE very charming and politically correct but

> totally corrupt?

>

> To date, the item of most concern here, seems the risk

> for cancer in 20 years or more. But from my research

> it appears that ALL WLS post ops have this risk and if

> not for esophageal cancer then for colon cancer or

> other. Some post ops have gotten cancer the year

> after surgery and their doctors have told them

> it was probably partially due to the WLS. But if you

> think of it, we all are at some risk. I with GERD am

> also in risk of esophageal cancer. My husband with a

> vasectomy is at high risk for prostate cancer. People

> who have taken birth control pills or had an abortion

> are at high risk for breast cancer. Seems most folks

> walking the face of the earth are at risk for SOME

> kind of cancer.

>

> There are steps which can be taken to prevent cancer

> or significantly cut down the risk - many veggies have

> actual anti cancer chemicals IN THEM. WLS post ops can

> go rich on the supplements to help prevent cancer. A

> regular exercise program (3 times a week, aerobic

> exercise or more) can cut the risks of cancer

> by 40 percent. Not smoking, not consuming alcohol,

> eating a good nutritious diet, lowering the fat

> consumption (which most WLS patients do). All these

> things cut down the risks.

>

> I am throwing this out for honest discussion and

> rebuttal. I too have experienced dreadful character

> assassination (not by surgeons though but by very

> zealous pre ops and post ops who for some reason do

> not wish prospectives to know about the dangers and

> risks or about alternatives to surgery). So please

> heap no more abuse on me. If you can answer my

> concerns here preferably with sites and facts, I would

> be very interested.

>

> I don't think surgery is for everyone and laying out

> the facts including the risks before AND the

> alternatives is a good step towards making sure that

> those who seek the surgical path are making a full

> INFORMED consent decision.

>

> Dr R still provides the most information about this on

> his website and I have not seen any of the info he

> provides which is not reliable according to all my

> other research.

>

> I look forward to your comments to any of my points

> but please no flames or insults, thanks in advance,

>

> Sue

>

> *******************************************************

> There you have it. Some one who actually went to the

> MGB site and read what we have been reading during our

> research process. I think Sue was very open and

> honest and expressed my thoughts when I was

> researching WLS. NO OTHER Doctor put out anywhere near

> the information about his procedure, required his

> patients to go through many, many steps before

> approving them, or maintains a database, website,

> patient list of contacts, etc...but Dr. R.

>

> He is still tops in my book!

>

> Godinet

> MGB 3/13/00

> 287 lbs/205 lbs

> Oklahoma

>

>

>

> __________________________________________________

>