Connect
Post revision surgery complications
Dave had revision surgery on the 19th. Seemed better for a day or 2. Then the spitting, coughing and vomiting started. Had 2 chest tubes inserted to drain fluid. Drained quite a bit. Yesterday he had another time inserted and more drained. A CT showed slight contrast residual near the recent surgical site. A possible leak. Today, no coughing or anything. The GI team described tomorrow's procedure to use a scope to determine if there is a leak. Possible fixes...a stent or an EOS sponge. Now Dave is trying to decide whether or not to proceed. Either one comes with more risks. I think he feels like if something can go wrong in his mind, it will. Its been a rough 7 months with progress met with back steps. Too many unknowns. Too many what ifs.
Like
Helpful
HugInterested in more discussions like this? Go to the Esophageal Cancer Support Group.
Connect
What is the update on this?
@deepdive1967
He had a sponge placed on 12/1. Did okay forv2 days til his heart rate spiked. Hes been in ICU since. On the 4th they confirmed the sponge is still in the right place. He has 2 chest tubes draining a significant fluid buildup in his chest. His blood pressure is soft. Guess they don't like to say low. His blood glucose is high so he gets insulin. He had 2 days of delirium...that was the worst for me. Thats resolved but he has a Foley catheter and a poop tube. He'll be hospitalized for a while longer. The hole at the anestemosis is most troubling. I pray he'll get thru this to get back to a reasonably normal life. Whatever that means.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 Reactions@deepdive1967
My husband passed last week. His revision surgery was followed by a leak at the anestemosis that was not closing and the fluid in his chest cavity would not drain. In the end it was sepsis. He fought as hard as he could. The colon interposition brought so many challenges. He died peacefully as I whispered he could go...his family was waiting for him.
I didn't want to put this in a discussion so I hope it only goes to you.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
3 ReactionsMy husband is 1 year post- op today. He had a robotic esophagectomy at MSK. Afterwards, he developed an anastomosis between what was left of his esophagus and the stomach conduit. He spent 6 months in Sloan with Chest tubes, a nasogastric tube, and a J-tube for feeding. He developed fistulas that connected to his lung. He did have 2 more thoracotomies, to no avail.He kept developing holes in his stomach which would not heal. They tried stents and EOS sponges, it literally took months to heal. He has not eaten or drunk anything in a year. He is finally home and has started chemo and immunotherapy. They have only given him 24-36 months to live, and this depends on if the chemo is effective and if he can withstand the treatments. The path forward is that if the chemo can eradicate the cancer which has metasitisized to the liver and some lymph nodes , he could have the colon interposition. Right now he is left with chronic coughing and hypersecretions which cause him to spit up and vomit all day and night. We tried many medications, the only one that helped somewhat was compazine. He is finally sleeping at night. I would like to know what the colon interposition challenges were, and if it was worth it. We don't need any more issues then we already have. Thank You
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 Reaction@mk52dk51
How did the colon interposition go? And what the challenges were. My husband is thinking of having it done so he can eat again.
thanks