Nutrition

My husband has had chemo and radiation, followed by surgery; a new esophagus was formed from his stomach so that he no longer has the valve to keep acid from coming up into his throat.  He takes Prevacid twice a day.  He recently had this new esophagus widened, so that he can swallow foods better.  What foods have any of you found to be best for this condition?

On 4/9/2008 Pollyclaire wrote:

My husband has had chemo and radiation, followed by surgery; a new esophagus was formed from his stomach so that he no longer has the valve to keep acid from coming up into his throat.  He takes Prevacid twice a day.  He recently had this new esophagus widened, so that he can swallow foods better.  What foods have any of you found to be best for this condition?

Pollyclaire,

You do not say how long it has been since surgery. I will assume it's been more than 2-3 months.

I can't give advice, but I had an esphagectomy (Ivor-Lewis) in July 2005 and here's what works for me. I stay away from fats except extra virgin olive oil. I limit sugars. Other than those two things, I eat about anything in small, not tiny, portions. I eat popcorn with olive oil drizzled on it, every evening, and that sits well. I keep my weight down. (Yes, I can gain weight) Extra weight around the middle will help force stomach contents up into esophagus.

The other thing I do is cycle - a lot. I believe that helps as much as anything.

Good luck and KEEP MOVING,

Steve

I am over 18 months out from the the same surgery.  I can eat just about anything, as long it is in small meals (four or five meals a day).  Eating slowly and in small bites is also helpful.

In general I avoid high carbohydrate items and highly fibrous meats.  The days of porter house steak dinners are gone.  (I can live with that.  Its a fair trade off for being alive.)  I am happy with one or two bites of my wife's steak.  I am OK with ground meats and most seafood.

I do best when I my meals are high in protien.  If I have a carb (crackers or bread), I eat a protien with it, e.g. cheese, peanut butter, meat, fish, etc.  If I have cake, donuts, cookies or a cocktail I keep the serving very small and make sure I keep to my protien rule.  These high glucose index foods can tear me up.

I also avoid carbonated drinks.  Tomato sauce, for some, reason does not like me anymore (I eat alfredo now).

Spicy foods in moderate amounts are not a problem, although doctors and nutritionists suggest you avoid them.

In the end, finding out what you can eat is pretty much trial an error. (Unless you listen to the nutitionists who will put you on bean sprouts and chicken salad.)

The  down side of not watching what you eat is dumping syndrome which includes nausea, gas, cramps, and diariaha.  An episode makes you a believer very quickly.

I also had to try several different antacids to find the one that worked best for me.  Most did not last 24 hours, even at two a day. 

Good luck

On 4/9/2008 Pollyclaire wrote:

My husband has had chemo and radiation, followed by surgery; a new esophagus was formed from his stomach so that he no longer has the valve to keep acid from coming up into his throat.  He takes Prevacid twice a day.  He recently had this new esophagus widened, so that he can swallow foods better.  What foods have any of you found to be best for this condition?

I had the same surgery in 2004.  I had surgery first and chemo and Rad second. Acid reflux has been my biggest enemy.  My husband bought a Craftmatic bed that has helped some, and I try not to eat late.  I take Previcid during the day and also take a Zantac when I go to bed at night.  I occasionally will aspirate and it is so painful...... and then I will have conjestion for a couple of weeks.  But living with this beats the heck out of cancer.

Sometimes I can eat Pizza and not have any problems, sometimes I can eat a cracker and have terrible heartburn.  What works one time won't necessarily work the next time.  I am down to about three or four nights in a row every three to four weeks with heartburn.  I have found that the amount of stress I am under plays as big a  part as what I put in my mouth. I have just accepted that this is the new normal for me and I am grateful to be here. I ALWAYS drink decaf everything.  From tea to soft drinks.  That is the only thing that will for sure give me heartburn.  I do allow myself some chocolate, but never just before bedtime.  

I wish you luck on this journey.  Isn't it wonderful that surgery can fix this terrible monster.  

You and all that love you will be in my prayers.

Gerri

On 4/10/2008 OsoDelSol wrote:

I am over 18 months out from the the same surgery.  I can eat just about anything, as long it is in small meals (four or five meals a day).  Eating slowly and in small bites is also helpful.

In general I avoid high carbohydrate items and highly fibrous meats.  The days of porter house steak dinners are gone.  (I can live with that.  Its a fair trade off for being alive.)  I am happy with one or two bites of my wife's steak.  I am OK with ground meats and most seafood.

I do best when I my meals are high in protien.  If I have a carb (crackers or bread), I eat a protien with it, e.g. cheese, peanut butter, meat, fish, etc.  If I have cake, donuts, cookies or a cocktail I keep the serving very small and make sure I keep to my protien rule.  These high glucose index foods can tear me up.

I also avoid carbonated drinks.  Tomato sauce, for some, reason does not like me anymore (I eat alfredo now).

Spicy foods in moderate amounts are not a problem, although doctors and nutritionists suggest you avoid them.

In the end, finding out what you can eat is pretty much trial an error. (Unless you listen to the nutitionists who will put you on bean sprouts and chicken salad.)

The  down side of not watching what you eat is dumping syndrome which includes nausea, gas, cramps, and diariaha.  An episode makes you a believer very quickly.

I also had to try several different antacids to find the one that worked best for me.  Most did not last 24 hours, even at two a day. 

Good luck

I want to thank you for sending me this message.  Your experiences have helped us as we walk this new road.  My husband remains cancer free and can eat most things.  Like you, the "steak-eating days" are gone; even pork chops seem to bring on a night time coughing spell.

One thing we have discovered, on our own, is that a small bowlful of cheerios just before bedtime gives the stomach acid something to work on and he doesn't get the acid reflux with the awful coughing (unless he's had a pork chop!)

Now, he has been diagnosed with osteoporosis (3 compression fractures in the spine) that most likely are due to the chemo he went through.  He remains on Prevacid twice a day and is taking Fosomax once a week for the osteo.

Thank you and all the others who wrote to encourage us and give us information.