Re: Thank's Andre'

October 22, 2000

Dear Andre',

Sorry you've been feeling down in the dumps. Wish there was something

that I could do or say that would help you out, and give you a boost. Even

though you've been feeling bad physically, and emotionally, please remember

that you are an inspiration to me. The fact that you've suffered 32 years

with Chronic Panc., makes me feel as if I can overcome, and/or deal with my

on illness especially during a bad month, or whatever. I've only had C.

Panc. eight years, so you inspire me to keep on keeping on! Thank you for

all that you do to inspire rookies like myself.

Andre' I want to ask you about the Whipple surgery. I had the Puestow

two years ago at M.U.S.C. My surgeon is internationally known for his

expertise, and he's the nicest Dr. I've ever met. Everybody loves Dr. .

So he's the only surgeon I'll let operate on me in a non-emergency

situation, so having said that, what exactly can I expect post-op. Will the

pain level be unusually high, or is it more on a par with the puestow?

Well, I go in for the surgery Oct. 30. The surgery will take place on

Haloween! Spooky! Well, just take your time as I understand you are still

trying to catch up on your mail.

Thank's Andre',

Henry

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

on 10/21/00 2:02 PM, acastenell@... at acastenell@... wrote:

> In a message dated 10/8/2000 7:17:48 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

> howmtp@... writes:

>

> << You are an inspiration to me buddy! God Bless. >>

>

> Henry,

>

> Sorry to take so long to respond, but things have not been well here as of

> late :-( Like you, I'm still ploughing through all of the e-mail messages

> and posts over the past several weeks, so I will be behind in my responses

> for a while.

>

> Thanks for those kinds words. They are really appreciated.

>

> Andre'

>

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October 22, 2000

In a message dated 10/22/2000 3:20:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time,

howmtp@... writes:

<< Andre' I want to ask you about the Whipple surgery. I had the Puestow

two years ago at M.U.S.C. My surgeon is internationally known for his

expertise, and he's the nicest Dr. I've ever met. Everybody loves Dr. .

So he's the only surgeon I'll let operate on me in a non-emergency

situation, so having said that, what exactly can I expect post-op. Will the

pain level be unusually high, or is it more on a par with the puestow?

Well, I go in for the surgery Oct. 30. The surgery will take place on

Haloween! Spooky! Well, just take your time as I understand you are still

trying to catch up on your mail. >>

Hi, Henry.

I hope you take this for what it's worth, since I would hate to scare you

more than necessary. Mentally, I know exactly how you must feel right now,

and you have every right to be a bit frightened. This surgery was very tough

on me. Initially, my recovery was very rapid. I was getting comments as to

how well I was progressing and, to be honest, I did feel good (naturally, I

was hurting from the massive intrusion I had just withstood. It is an 4-8

hour surgery and is extremely dangerous. It is critical that you have a

doctor you trust completely, as well as experience with this sort of surgery.)

After about a week, the problems began. The pain was nothing like I had ever

experienced before or since. No amount of pain medication offered more than

the minimal amounts of relief for very short periods of time. I was on a

morphine pump as well as Dilaudid, but nothing worked. After spending

another month in this condition in the hospital, and after having to undergo

another surgery to clear scar tissue that was restricting my ability to eat,

I was released to come home to home health care for another month. While I

was able to start drinking water a week after I returned from the hospital, I

still could not eat anything and was receiving TPN at home. This continued

for another month until I was able to eat 3 months after discharge! I still

am having difficulty with being able to eat (I live off of Ensure) and

probably will never be able to eat solid food again. Is this due to my

recent surgery, the doctors are divided on this but I think it is.

I hope this doesn't unduly scare you. I know that you already have enough on

your mind to worry about. Just remember, we all recover at varying degrees

from this surgery. Just because I had so much difficulty with the surgery,

and continue to have problems doesn't mean anything when it comes to how you

will react to this same procedure. We all have different forms of

pancreatitis and are at various stages of this illness. I had numerous

surgeries prior to the Whipple which may have impacted the slow recovery I

experienced.

Henry, I wish you all of the luck in the world come next week. You will stay

in my prayers for a safe surgery and speedy recovery. Please keep in touch

with me and let me know how you are progressing.

Andre'

October 22, 2000

In a message dated 10/22/00 3:20:25 AM Eastern Daylight Time, howmtp@...

writes:

<<what exactly can I expect post-op. Will the pain level be unusually high,

>>\

Hi Henry, I'm answering with Andre, not for Andre, The operation, a Whipple,

is serious surgery, they will be " in " for a while. They will be " in " so long

they will send out for pizza. Part of your recovery, and recovery pain, will

depend on how long they were there. A short time means that you will

generally have less pain and recover faster. A long time and the result will

be longer and harder on you. Part of that will depend on how you look inside,

you want the surgeon, the cutter, to look at what they are doing, evaluate as

they merrily cut along, and do the best they can while they are in there. You

never really know until it over. Some " cutters " work fast, like " to hell with

sterile procedure, this whole area will be covered with s**t soon anyway,

let's cut while the scalpel is still sharp. " Other cutters work slow, like

" lets be real careful and really do this right, oh by the way does anyone

have a cup of coffee, I feel like a coffee break. " So you get what you get

and your job is to do the best as you can with whatever you get.

Good Luck, God bless, and best wishes

Poncho

October 22, 2000

In a message dated 10/22/00 7:15:31 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

poncho9191@... writes:

<<

Hi Henry, I'm answering with Andre, not for Andre, The operation, a Whipple,

is serious surgery, they will be " in " for a while. They will be " in " so long

they will send out for pizza. Part of your recovery, and recovery pain, will

depend on how long they were there. A short time means that you will

generally have less pain and recover faster. A long time and the result will

be longer and harder on you. Part of that will depend on how you look

inside,

you want the surgeon, the cutter, to look at what they are doing, evaluate

as

they merrily cut along, and do the best they can while they are in there.

You

never really know until it over. Some " cutters " work fast, like " to hell

with

sterile procedure, this whole area will be covered with s**t soon anyway,

let's cut while the scalpel is still sharp. " Other cutters work slow, like

" lets be real careful and really do this right, oh by the way does anyone

have a cup of coffee, I feel like a coffee break. " So you get what you get

and your job is to do the best as you can with whatever you get.

Good Luck, God bless, and best wishes

Poncho >>

Dear Poncho and Andre, You are scaring me. My surgery is much more involved

than Henry's and I am really getting frightened. My surgery, removing the

pancreas and the spleen, duodenum, rework the bile duck and what else I am

not sure. I will be on the table 10 hours. My body is weak and fatigued

from chronic hepatitis. Wow, I am really scared. Shirley

October 23, 2000

In a message dated 10/22/00 8:13:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

shirlf3542@... writes:

<< Wow, I am really scared. Shirley >>

Shirley, please don't be scared. You have to do what you have to do, and the

same goes for your surgeon. Place your faith in your decisions, and as you

recover just do your best. After all the surgery is to help, maybe even

during recovery from the surgery you will be healthier and stronger than you

have been for some time and thus you will do better. I certainly won't sugar

coat the result of the decisions that you are making, it will not be easy.

But it may be the best in the long run. Fear, uncertainty, and regrets will

not help you. Faith, persistence, and time are now your allies. Best wishes

Poncho

October 24, 2000

In a message dated 10/23/00 9:05:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time,