Whipple Procedure.................

[Gill44]

Hi Folks,

Help needed please..............

I am due into hospital within the next week for the Whipple Procedure

I have suspected Tumor in the head of my Pancreas, although after Ultra sound, Ct, MRI and 2 x camera procedures nothing apparent is showing up!I see this as being very positive news

.

I have narrowing of the bile duct and had a stent fitted on 6th Jan 11 due to Jaundice.

I am now starting to get anxious after reading what to expect after the operation.

Anybody got anything positive to tell me?

Best Regards

Gill x

[Lizbeth]

Absolutely!!! My mum is 3 weeks post-op having had a Whipples and is home and recovering extremely well!! She is 68 years old and is eating fine, she has to eat small meals at present, to not overload her stomach, but she is progressing marvelously.

Try not to worry too much (not easy i know) she had a tumour in the head of the pancreas. You will get a lot of support here though, i certainly did, and any questions a nurse is attached to the forum whom can answer all you need to ask.

My best wishes

Lizbeth

[Margey]

Hi Gill

I can fully appreciate your anxieties about your op as I remember how scared I was. But hang on in there and take it a day at a time meeting each piece of news as it comes- well that was the way I coped with it! Yes you will be full of tubes after but it is amazing as Lizbeth says how quickly you may be home and improving.

I know there are so many cases that you have probably read about on here where there have not been such good outcomes ( and my heart goes out to everyone as I was in that situation with my mum) but I had my whipples in September 2006 and I am going strong.

Think positively and please keep us informed of your journey.

Love Margey

[AnneD]

Hello Gill,

I am nearly ten weeks post-op now having had a Whipple in December.

This was because of a tumour in the head of the pancreas.

Twenty months before this I had had my distal pancreas removed for the same reason.

This had an excellent result and recovery and I wasn't diabetic.

Anyway - you asked for positive news and my recovery has been positive.

I am eating well and have a good appetite ( but have to cope with diabetes having no pancreas ).

I have no pain at all.

I am just glad to be alive!!

Good luck with your procedure and hope your recovery is uneventful.

Best wishes,

Anne.

[PCUK Nurse Jeni]

Anne,

Really inspirational story.

Well done to you, being able to have 2 operations.

KR,

Jeni.

[Trevor F]

You want something positive ?

I had a Whipples procedure carried out in June 2009 at the Wellington Hospital in London and I'm still around !! The surgeon removed a tumour the size of a golf ball. My surgeon is Italian so I called my procedure the Italian Job. He was brilliant, absolutely fantastic, did a great job. I had 6 cycles of adjuvent chemo following my operation during which I went back to work as I was bored. Towards the end of 2009 I was contacted by a large trading company in Switzerland preparing for an IPO ( initial public offering ) and would I like to be involved. So I started commuting between London and Zurich and I now have a Swiss work and residence permit. Some weekends we stay over in Switzerland and drive through the St Gotthard tunnel to Ticino, the Italian part. Last May I took the mountain railway to the top of the Jungfrau at 11000 feet above sea level.

I still have regular quarterly CT scans. The one before last showed a lesion so I restarted chemo which so far appears to have done the trick. Getting on for 2 years now.... not out of the woods just yet but hopefully heading that way. Is that positive ?

[Gill44]

Thank you folks for such positive stories

My procedure is planned for Monday 21st Feb!

Although still very anxious and scared, I just want it over with now.

Best wishes to you all.

Gill x

[Gillian R]

Hi Gill,

Just wanted to say good luck, my husband had a 'Whipple' in December and it's a long slow recovery but at the end of it you must take the chance. No alternative, you have got to go for it and be as positive as you can. Lot's of people will support you. I wish you the best. Build up your strength and be determined to get over any complications that might occur. Research and get the best of help, demand to be given all the facts, however difficult they may be ........... and enjoy the loved ones you have around you.

Good luck

[PCUK Nurse Jeni]

Hi Gill,

All the very best with the operation.

Long way off I know, but you should be offered post-op chemo.

There is also a clinical trial called Espac -4, which you should enquire about.

Best wishes,

Jeni.

[lawalsh]

Dear all,

These stories are just fantastic to read, we all need hope and that's what they bring. Trevor, I need to hear more stories like yours, it soulds to me that it is your mental positive attitude that is keeping you alive and well and truly kicking. My poorly dad has a sense of humour like yours and says that the government have enough money out of him over his life time, he's determined he's sticking around another 20 years at least to get it all back!!!

Please keep the good messages coming, I need to hear some success stories.

Thank you,

LA xxx

[Gill44]

Hi folks,

Day 9 into my recovery from my whipple's procedure.

It's been quite a smooth journey so far for me.

I've just got bad,bad trapped wind

I am hoping to be back home this friday to continue my recovery.

Still waiting for my biopsy results but whatever was in has all come out

Regards folks

Gill xx

[lawalsh]

Dear Gill,

I have been following your thread, 9 days, good girl, you stay positive and get well. Take a leaf out of Trevor's book, he seems determined to be strong and get better, not be beaten by PC.

I know we don't know each other on here, but I'm amazed at the comfort it brings to know someone is there to listen and support you. A week ago I hadn't even heard of pancreatic cancer and now it's as though I've grown a new family on here.

Thinking of you Gill, sending you a big hug of positivity!!!

Get well soon, stay strong,

LA xxx

[PCUK Nurse Jeni]

Hi Gill,

Congratulations on an excellent post-op recovery so far.

Keep it up and continue to get strong, but being sensible also.

Peppermint is good for trapped wind -they usually have some kicking about on some drug trolley or another in hospitals!!

Ask if some could be given to you -pharmacy will have some even if the ward don't.

All the best,

Jeni.

[Gill44]

Hi folks,

Quick update......day 18 post op, all dressings are off now and healing well.

Apart from feeling a little weak I'm recovering well.

I'm starting to get my appetite back although only eating small amounts which is a start.

I go to clinic on Monday for my results!

Gill xx

[HMac]

Dear Gill,

Fantastic progress so far - well done ! My husband had his op 10th Feb and had drainage

complications. Wound still being packed and will take approx 2more weeks to heal. His

appetite is coming back too but he never was a big eater so not easy for him !

Well done you for a great recovery so far and best of luck for Monday.

All the best

Helen

[Gill44]

Thank you Helen,

I hope your hubby is on the mend soon.

Gill x

[richiebirch]

Hi Gill-Keep smiling,I had my op 18 months ago.Take each day as it comes and dont worry too much about your food intake,your digestive system will "right" itself eventually.Its a massive op and we are all different with regards to recovery.Feel free to ask me anything!! All the best for Monday-Regards Richie x

[Gill44]

Hi Richie,

Did you taste buds go to pot after your op? Even tap water tastes awful

I still cannot get my head around the past 3 months, everything just happend so quickly.

Any advise on post op would be good to hear.

Hope you are keeping well

Gill x

[AnneD]

Hello Gill,

It's good to see that you are making a good recovery from your recent Whipple procedure.

I'd just like to say that, like you, my sense of taste was weird after the surgery.

I didn't like water and couldn't drink tea or coffee for ages.

All I wanted to drink, and I don't know why, was cups of Oxo!!

I relied on Ready Brek, soup, mashed potato and Oxo for about three weeks after I came home and gradually introduced other things.

Now, three months post-op, I can eat anything and have a good appetite.

I don't need Oxo any more and enjoy a cup of tea as I used to.

Good luck with your continued recovery,

Anne.

[Gill44]

Hi Helen,

I hope your Hubby is on the mend soon.

Gill x

[HMac]

Hi Gill,

Thanks for that - his wound is 'granulating' (funny how quickly you pick up the terminology

isn't it !! But then, if you don't, you can't keep up with the conversation ...) but the district

nurses reckon it'll be another month yet before it heals. This was not the best of news for

my husband today as he was already feeling 'on a low'. Some days he's bright and alert, yet

others he'll sleep nearly all day. His appetite hasn't been brilliant today either. Hopefully

tomorrow will be a better day for him.

Hope you are continuing to recover well and keeping smiling !

Helen

[desmet34]

Hi,

I had my op on January 2010, followed by 6 months of chemotherapy. not disputing that getting well again is indeed a struggle- but i am now back at work- full time as a staff nurse and doing well. thank god for XX and the marvelous Mr {name removed -moderator}, i still have a life!

desmet34

[Trevor F]

desmet

I had my Italian Job or Whipples in June 2009 followed by chemo. I have been back at work now since Sept 2009, busier than before ! It's like starting over again with a new life.

[Avs]

Hi Guys

Very inspirational stories from everyone on this forum after going through such a big operation.

I would like to also add my family issues and would appreciate some responses from everyone involved. My mother 62 has been diagnosed with PC, she also had lesions on her liver and lung which has come up benign, great news, the doctors here in Australia were waiting on these results to determine if the Whipples will go ahead as they advised it will not if the Cancer has spread which we now know it hasnt.

Most likely after speaking to our surgical team we will decide as a family if my mum will go ahead with this procedure, would love to hear from others who have been through the Whipples Procedure with their experiences and risks involved with such a big op.

Thanks in advance

[suef]

Dear Gill,

Here is some more positive news. I had a Whipple 2 years ago to remove a tumour from the head of my pancreas. The tumour turned out to be non-cancerous, for which I am truly grateful. I spent 3 weeks in hospital, and another 3 weeks convalescing at home before going away on holiday. In September last year I did the Hadrian's Wall long distance footpath, about 80 miles, over 10 days, rather slowly but with enormous pride and enjoyment! My life is more or less normal, except that I have small meals and take lots of Creon!

Good luck!

SueF