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What's recovery after distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy like?
Pancreatic Cancer | Last Active: Dec 22, 2023 | Replies (169)Comment receiving replies
I had a distal pancreatectomy/splenectomy for a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor in October 2022. I'm glad to find a person who had that specific thing also, as it seems hard to find a lot online about that (especially with a neuroendocrine tumor, which apparently is rare?).
I'm in my fourth month of recovery and doing well except I do have some discomfort in my stomach, and wonder if it is due to a lot of scar tissue. My surgeon is kind of lax about giving me details, which is frustrating. I wonder if there's any medication I should be taking to improve digestion and bowel issues also. It's all new and confusing! I hope you're doing well.
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Hi there-
I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing stomach discomfort. It very well could be that the scar tissue is sticking to the incision site. If your surgeon is not onboard with looking into that, I would check with a cosmetic surgeon that specializes in abdominal surgery. My cosmetic surgeon is the one who actually ended up fixing the issue and I am so much better and can actually lay flat in bed without pain. She indicated that my scar tissue from the pancreatic surgery was actually quite deep. I hope you get relief. I don't know where you live but if you are in the Twin Cities, I can recommend my surgeon to you if you private message me. As for the digestion, I also still have issues with that part. Just last week my doctor informed me that I have low hemoglobin and iron which she believes is due to my surgery, so I am receiving IV iron infusions for the next 4 weeks. Rest assured it's not uncommon to have GI issues after surgery. The way my doctor explained it was this: "because you have lost the gallbladder, spleen and pancreas which all kick in bile when you eat to help with the digestion process, most people that have undergone the surgery you have, will have GI issues." You may want to ask about taking enzymes (can be oral pills or IV infusion) to help with your discomfort. Enzymes can be tricky as there are different types, so be sure to check with your physician. Daily I currently take (2) Colace- which you can get over the counter, and MiraLAX with my coffee, which seems to help somewhat. I am not sure what your circumstances are, but I am a huge advocate for speaking up with my doctor. If you don't feel as though you your doctor is taking your concerns seriously, I would suggest looking into changing to one that will listen to your concerns and take action. It's your body and you have already been to hell and back (worry, surgery, healing ect. ). Purely my thoughts of course. You got this! Stay encouraged and let me know if I can help further. Please know in your heart that I care and would love to keep in touch.
Warmest Regards,
Sherry