Pale stool/low bile production

[JohnDoe60]

Hi

Warning: I will be describing my Mom's stool.

My Mom is still having pale stool despite taking a lot of Creon, and sometimes the stool floats. I think this has some relationships with her difficulty in gaining weight, despite eating much more food compared to my sister.

If the stool sinks, then she must have had enough pancreatic enzymes to digest the fat, otherwise it would float (which sometimes it still is). Also, she no longer has diarrhoea problems. So I wonder why the stool is pale in color: (1) her latest scan (yesterday) thankfully shows no abnormality; (2) there is absolutely no obstruction; and (3) she is not jaundiced. She did her Whipple in May last year--so it has been almost 9 months, and things should have recovered. This pale-coloured stool has been happening since her Whipple. Her weight declined considerably after Whipple. (Not so much during the neo-adjuvant therapy with Folfirinox.)

Is there something wrong with her bile production? This is the only thing I could think about. Has anyone ever used any bile supplements to help this? Does it help with the digestion and absorption?

Poor mom is very stressed because of her weight.

Thanks for reading.

PS Can I upload the stool image here? I know it does not sound right, but believe me, I would want to see all of your stools to compare and understand which one is the right one.

John

[PCUK Nurse Rachel R]

Hi JohnDoe60,

It's Rachel here, one of the nurses. I am sorry to hear that Mom is still having ongoing issues with her stools and is struggling in maintaining, or gaining weight.

It's great to hear Mom's scan was all clear. I'm sure this was a big relief.

I wonder whether you might consider contacting us so that we can discuss this more? This is likely to be the best way for us to try and help. Our contact details are in the strip below.

The reason for the pale stools and weight loss could be linked to the dose of Creon Mom is taking and how she is taking it. Alternatively, it could be other things too that we can explore.

Hope to be in touch soon,

Rachel

Rachel Richardson

Pancreatic Cancer Specialist Nurse

Support Team

Pancreatic Cancer UK

email: nurse@pancreaticcancer.org.uk

support line: 0808 801 0707