Hello! You're kind to inquire after me. I check into the board daily, but backed off from posting for a few reasons, including health. I'm hanging in there. I've had a rough summer, no thanks to a gastric output obstruction. I could consume and digest food, but the blockage kept it from moving into my small intestine. A duodenal stent didn't help; as it turns out, the pinch point was below the stent. Anyway, since the beginning of June, I've had two surgeries (duodenal stent and replacing the ureteral stent), 15 days of higher-dose radiation to shrink the blockage, a short hospital stay for TPN, and reduced nutrition and hydration, all of which have left me weaker than I was in May. I'm getting fluids twice a week, and I received 2 units of blood on Wednesday because my hemoglobin stays too low.

The radiation did help, as my stomach is better and I'm eating solid food. (Thank heavens--I couldn't tolerate the "full liquid" diet, AKA mush.) But the problem hasn't been permanently solved, of course, so we're going to consult with an HPB surgeon next week to discuss options. My oncologist is campaigning for a GJ (gastric-jejunum) bypass, in which the bottom of the stomach would connect to the jejunum (small intestine), bypassing the duodenum and pinch point below it. Meanwhile, chemo (Folfiri) is set to resume on Tuesday 8/27, and I hope we get a good response. My CA 19-9 is up to 217, in part due to inflammation from radiation, so I'd like to knock it down again for a while. My brain wants to do things--the library reading tutor program starts next month, for example, and I'd love to volunteer--but my bod just hasn't been cooperative. I'm hoping for better days ahead. Or, to quote my blood type, B positive--that is, be positive!