I've been taking Zenpep for a few years. It costs thousands of dollars per month. And yet, all it is, is a tiny amount of pig pancreas.
The recommended dose for a small weight adult (117-179 lb) is 40,000 per meal. The recommended dose for a larger adult is 60,000 per meal.
I'm indignant. I've been limping along all this time on 25,000 per meal. Craving fats but if I eat very much of them I end up with fatty diarrhea. I called for guidance and they refused to give me any. My doctors know nothing. Not even the gastroenterologists.
I finally got a diagnosis from genetic testing at sequencing.com. $400 for your whole genome and comparison to a database of genetic disorders. You will find all your family illnesses listed there but of course, most of them won't strike you. But my dad's leukemia, the family colon cancer, the Hirschsprung's some have, minor vitamin deficiencies, and other diseases we haven't seen were all listed as highest probabilities. There were more than 40,000 lowest probabilities (which is why doctors without genetic guidance have a real problem with getting a diagnosis of the "Zebra" diseases).
Hereditary autoimmune pancreatitis.
My grandfather thought he had contracted the problem from eating contaminated beef during World War II. There are two others with the same symptoms in the extended family.
Autoimmune pancreaticitis attacks can be ended with prednisone.
That's important because the pancreatitis progressively damages the pancreas.
Same symptoms as pancreatic cancer, but it doesn't kill you early. The only unaided way to stop the pancreatitis is to exhaust your white blood cells . Which you do by not eating or drinking (except some water) for 72+ hours)
I can't get to Mayo because I can't drive up there. Not until I get cataract surgery. I'm 72.
I have a problem with both fats and proteins. Proteins cause the most pain. When I ran out of Zenpep last month, I used health food enzymes and went on a vegetarian diet. I was surprised that I could eat the higher-fat, low-protein diet. In my lifetime I've become progressively intolerent or allergic to seafood, dairy, wheat, hard boiled eggs, and unaccompanied eggs, And just recently I've been having troubles with all meats. Something seems to go right through the kidneys. Ot it could be an "allergy" that's showing up as kidney passthrough/bladder irritation. Very smelly.
Anyway, I opened up one of the Zenpep capsules to split the dose and saw how little was in there, and got online.
Good post. I got my genetic testing through a breast cancer specialist. Eyeopening and at least gives a person a clue as to where to begin a search for what the heck is going on physiologically.
A good doctor is very hard to find. There are physicians who are born with the talent for medicine. There are those who didn't have a true calling for it.
It is a roll of the dice which one you end up with. Always look at a physician as if he or she is your equal, until you find out if they are smarter than you and are dedicated to their calling.
Medicine is an art as well as a science.
You can teach science, but you cannot teach true talent and innate detective type intelligence into a physician.
Good physicians are as rare as diamonds and true talented artists.
It is our job as patients to find the diamonds.