I was suffering before my surgery with 3 small bowel constrictions due to Nets. I had lost over 100 lbs because anything I ate, I had to push through a keyhole as my surgeon put it. I had severe malabsorbtion. I was weak and had the blood work of a refugee. I point this out because it affected my recovery.

After the surgery, I had a leak that washed bile over the outside of my intestines. I wouldn't wish that on anybody. I was really sick! In the hospital for about a month total. At one point I had 5 separate drains going from my abdomen. The radiology department and I got to know each other as each of those drains installed with CT guidance. Because of that leak, I was on TPN for a month to give that a chance to heal. This is where I got the nutrition I needed through a Pic Line IV. I went home on TPN. Got that at night while I slept. I did not eat any food at all during that time. I had lost down to 168 lbs. I started out weighing over 300 lbs a year earlier. My dear wife was a great nurse for me during recovery. Helped me with everything. I could hardly get up and walk to be honest. Slowly but surely things started improving. I got an appetite back, started eating good meals again, getting some strength back.

After 6 months of recovery, I felt pretty good. Still had some joint pain, but that was improving. I really was good at 1 year post op. Now I'm at about 20 months since that surgery. Still have Nets of the mesentery. I get Lanreotide once a month and a PET scan every 6 months. Life is good. 🙂