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Esophagectomy: What is life like Afterwards?
Hello, my dad was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in March. His tumor is very small and isolated, thankfully! He has been a champ and has finished chemo and radiation. His esophagectomy is scheduled in a couple of weeks. He and the rest of my family are starting to feel the fear and reality of this procedure. My dad's not a big talker but I know he is scared. I would love to connect with others to learn about what life has been like after this surgery so I can help support my dad. I am also hoping to get him involved with some support groups with others who have experienced the surgery. It would be so beneficial for him to connect with others who have been through what he is going through. Any insight on post-surgery recovery and life would be very appreciated!
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hello. the doctor says he's improving... but i wouldnt say "much better"
i'd leave it at improving 💪 he"s still on iv antibiotics, lung stent,
feeding tube and very weak.
*Christina Labrie*
*Labrie Fine Art Conservation*
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1 Reaction@cometsmom hello. how do i get a link to the meeting. thank you 🙂 christina
@ajax2026
Zoom call Starting NOW... 9am Eastern. Here's the link... passcode, if asked for, is tuiBE5
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4550284795
@ajax2026 Hi Christina, I didn’t get a collapsed lung which is a serious complication but its a good thing they are taking care of that for your brother. If he doesn’t feel right about leaving the hospital you and the rest of the family can try to advocate for him and ask they keep him there a bit longer to make sure he is ok. He is very delicate now to go home and go thru another emergency. I was lucky to have a top surgeon at a pretty good hospital so every emergency I had was handled promptly. Don’t let hospital decide for your brother if you guys dont fewl comfortable with decisions on his care. Sometimes we need to advocate for ourselves.
I am not sure how large was my leak but it looked like a sprinkler in the xrays.
@v132077 I did my dilations for three or four months maybe a bit more then stopped mid 2025.
I did another one like four or five months after stopping, then stopped for another five months or so, and I just did another “tune up dilation” a couple days ago when it felt like maybe getting a bit narrower.
Doing great now.
If you stop and then restart just be careful the first time since you don’t know if it narrowed or how much it did
@manuelo hello, your sprinkler was able to heal itself?? For others reading this I dont want to create uneeded anxiety- in my brothers situation there was a delay getting him to the hospital. If he'd gone as soon as the pain spiked, I think he could have been spared the collapsed lung. the infection would have been treated earlier. i'm not sure if there was anyway to avoid the leak needing to be fixed by surgery. Even if your pain Rx is working call the doctor to and tell him it changed... if it hadnt been a late friday when his bandages were changed- told was told all was well... etc etc... sunday morning he couldnt breathe. I just got an update while I was writing this. His o2 is at 100% and white blood cells are good. 🙂 they're doing chest xrays everyday, they're still concerned about shortness of breathe, the antibiotics were changed... god willing he's improving a bit everyday 🙏 he's in a top hospital, top doctor.
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1 Reaction@ajax2026 Hi, Yes my leak healed on its own. They just kept me longer at hospital when they realized it. I was there fourteen days. Last few days they had me eating jello and soft stuff like that but I had to keep feeding tube for a couple of months.
Glad your brother is doing well. Btw I still have a handhell device you have to keep blowing you have to keep inhaling from in order to exercise your lungs. I am sure your brother will get one too. It is great to exercise your lungs.
@manuelo
Glad everything is working good for you. I have reduced the frequency of my dilations to every third day instead of every day. Seems to be working fine so far. Not sure if I will ever quit entirely because I don’t want to deal with it closing up, and the dilations have become second nature for me.
@v132077 after a few weeks you can try doing dilations once a week then every ten days, then twice a month. Then monthly, then stop for a while. If it feels like food is becoming harder to pass you resume dilations. I quit for about four months then I did a tune up. I have quit twice already each time for about four or five months.
Your stricture wont happn overnight so you can try stopping for a while and see how you feel.
Take care