and the PEG tube

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Yes, our little E-ectomy"sub-group" will no doubt bind us together along with the pre and post myotomy groups here. Nobody is here for a good reason, but there will be "good," from coming being here.

I have never heard of a peg tube before, but I realize at this point, as I graduate to a new level of "treatment" that there is going to be much I'll have to learn. Google is my next step.

Peg Tube - Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy Tube

Click on Tube feeding

Its a tube that goes directly into the stomach from outside the body. Ensure is one of the drinks that gets poured in, much like a can of oil into the car's engine.

Peg Tube (for a message board about using it)

As said, this is primarily for oral and esophageal cancer patients as this is the only way to receive nutrition. Considering the nature of the disease, its not a big deal.

, so my surgeon says a mortality rate of 1 in 20, and your surgeon says a rate of 1 in 5. I would suggest that you go see my surgeon.

What do these numbers mean to us? We have read that in the U.S. there is one new case of achalasia per year per 100,000 people. And we got it!

1 in 100,000 and it was us! If a doctor then says to you that 1 in 5 die, or 1 in 20 die from the esophagectomy, and we were already "selected" as the ONE in 100,000, what chance do we have of not being the ONE in five, or the ONE in 20 who die from this surgery. I'll follow 's lead, to search for a better answer, any day to improve those odds.

I plan on inquiring, and if permitted, sending my records to Dr. Patti, and Dr. Rice. Those are the two names that come up the most here.

In the meantime, its way overdue for me to initiate some life style changes, such as eating smaller quantities, and if need be, add in between meals. In the past I had never considered (much less thought about) using Ensure, but there comes a time.

I will be following up on all the doctors names everyone has sent me, and I thank all of you for making it easier for me that way.

In a message dated 8/2/2006 3:59:18 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, susan@... writes:

Hi , I just wanted to send along my best wishes also. I am also facing having an esoghagectomy, so I am following your story with great interest. I was told the mortality rate was more like 20% because it is usually erformed on cancer patients. That was quickly followed by . . . but it's exactly the same operation. 1 in 5 was way too high for my liking. My original post is here somewhere when I first came from seeing Dr. Gehman. I was pretty horrified and scared, but I'm doing O.K. emotionally now. I know I will have to travel to Toronto when the time is right, but having an esophagectomy is my only alternative. (I have already had two open myotomies) The risks are huge, And I was also told it wouldn't last too many years as my new esophagus would just stretch right out again. I may just live with a peg tube instead. (I don't have one yet though) For now, I'm just living day by day with my struggle to eat. Hot chocolate (Nestle's Quik with hot milk) seems to be my easiest "food" to manage right now. Is any one using a peg tube to help them eat? Thunder Bay, Ontario Canada