My husbands esopagectomy surgery is 18 days away :/

My husband was diagnosed March 8th with Barrett's esophageal adenocarcinoma, it has been a roller coaster of emotions since that day.... He had his pre-op testing today... Hi surgery is May 8th. ...his is a or we thought he was a healthy 49 ( he will be 50 on 4/28) year old.... He is fit, he exercises, rides motorcycles, snowboards...and I am from the medical world, I use to schedule these surgeries, I have spent the last month reading your boards... He is the only person in the world who does not know what his surgery initials... Other then what the surgeon has told him...he would never google this... That is good i guess... Some need to know and other do not,,l depending on the person.... The good and bad part is, every person we know has, we get calls daily on what we need to do, read, watch, what I need to say, do, eat , I guess under this situation, when we can't control LIFE, people try to use their control, as the cruel reality is, we are powerless...we are strong Christians... Ironically our pastor just announced he had stage four lymphoma on Sunday...so we are blessed that at least we he can have some surgery and remove the cancer... I know it it is a long road ahead, as any wife, to know her husband will have such a radical surgery is scary... I happen to be on disability myself for chronic migraines... So I fear my own health...however, I know God will give me the grace I need to get through,,, we have a crazy puppy...who is one... I think we should find a home for her in advance??? I worry she will jump on him after surgery (Shepard-lab). She makes Marley look like an angel..so many fears....until that date, we are just enjoying each other, eating anything we want..as once this surgery happens..our life will change... Thanks for your blogs, I just needed a place to vent,,, thank you!!!!

God bless you both and give you strength for each day!  I think my nursing education is sometimes really helpful, and sometimes I wish I didn't know so much.  Could it be true that 'ignorance is bliss'?

Very much so, ignorance is bliss.... In the medical field, one knows too much... However in the Christian field God can do anything... Thank you for your prayers and support, it is so wonderful to have a place where I can go...post operative.... I am completely clueless on how to care for him...thanks again!!!

I am encouraged to think of how many people's lives have been touched by God (mine included) when 'modern medicine' held grim hope--if any.

Sorry to learn of you and your husband's trial.  I am also a strong Christian and an 8 year EC survivor.  I didn't know this message board existed when I was being treated and I wish I had.  I had my chemo/rad first and then the McKewon surgery (3 surgical openings).  I got every side effect possible and had lots of different things happen, but the doctors and nurses were all right.....all these things go away in time.  I had a rugged 8 months, but 5 months after my surgery things were really looking up.  I wish I had just known and planned on several months of "crying out to the Lord" and knowing that He would answer one cry at a time.  I am not sorry He allowed me to go through this.  Actually, I count it a blessing because my attitude has changed about many things.  I enjoy "everything" and I feel blessed with the smallest luxuries.  I pray that you and your hubby will experience the same joys after this initial trial is over.  The verse the Lord gave me at the outset was:  Psalm 118:17  I will not die, but live and declare the works of God. 

I marked my calendar to remember you and your hubby on May 8th in prayer.  Be sure to come to this message board with any question you have.  The people here are wonderful and you will get great and encouraging advice.  Be sure to ask about the smallest questions.....eg.  Why does he cough?  Oh, be sure he does not lay flat after surgery and make sure he has a good wedge or sleeps in a recliner in the beginning.  Oh, I hope he has a feeding tube.  That makes things so much easier.  Best wishes to you.  We'll be watching for your posts.

Thank you so very much....Priase god for your words...I will ask many questions after surgery...I love what you said, he would answer one cry at a time...I told my adult daughter to join this... As she calls me late at night crying...The big C is just a horrible word...the most beautiful experiences I have had, is when I was broken beyond measure..... Thank you for rembering us on May 8th... There so many details...bills, animals, tags are due on car.... I got jury duty HELLO...life goes on...and my brain is broken... One day at a time...first things first....breath... You are a wonderful encouragement to me, and I am sure many others.... Psalm118:17 he left an angel on earth, to help others...xoxox

Good Luck to you both. It is a roller coaster ride and you're right ignorance is sometimes bliss. My husband was diagnosed Xmas week; since then he's had ghemo to shrink the tumour which was down near the stomach and found early. He had his op on the 19th March and after 2 weeks in hospital and 3 weeks at home is starting to get back to some type of normality before the Oncologist talks him into another round of chemo. It will be hard as it's going to be harder to keep his weight on now but the Drs are so pleased to get a patient diagnosed so early and potentially curable that we'll have to seriously consider it. God Bless.

And vent you should, i also a young 51 one now as i was dianosed with esophagus cancer in the lower part right on the spinkster on april 5th 2011. And yes i went through chemo, radiation surgery and more chemo. And got a ct scan that showed all was good no signs of cancer. One month later by accident because i was getting something else checked they found a quarter size cancerous tumor growing in my liver that wasn't there a month ago. That's a fast growing cancer there. So i'm on a four month otur of the chemo again. With no rest from the the other battle of cancer and i am wore out. I was well fit, although i didn't work out or anything i was very well off in the muscle area in my arms and legs. I weighed 247 at 6 ft tall. Yea i know i did have a little extra there but most of that weight was muscle. My regular doc always said i was one stocky guy for someone that never worked out. But i did work physically at my job and when i got home i was always doing something staying busy until dark most of the days. As a matter of fact when i found out i had cancer i was adding a real nice 1000sq.ft. Shop onto the house to do all my work in. Well it never got finished it's still at the point it was when i was told i had cancer. It is dired in but still needs to be finished caulking and painting on the outside and everything on the inside. I'm just too weak most of the time especially being back on the chemo. Well i know your getting your fair share of advise about the procedures of whats coming but i have to say if he has to get the top half of his stomach removed and part of his esophagus removed tell the doc to please replace it with a piece of intestines as mine was done or even if he just has a part of his esophagus removed don't let the doctors talk him in to just having the stomach lifted up and re-attached. He'll be sorry because he'll have a feeling of pressure on the stomach all the time and it will be there all the time because it is pressure on the stomach caused by it being lifted up in a space too narrow for it causing that feeling. Other than that i was back to work after two months after that surgery. I did lose 108 lbs. Total so far oh but 4 lbs of that was after i started chemo for this new cancer i have. So i guess the total for the first round was 104 lbs. And i was eating all the time as i still am but the food is just not digesting right but if i can ever get off this chemo i may be able to gain something. Yes he has a long battle there for him and i wish you both the best of luck and hope everything goes as planned and better than planned. Oh and i'm not sure about that breed of dog but my yorky dog came to me when i came home and was just as afraid to get too close to me as i was of him jumping on me i let him see and sniff around my cut all the way across from my right side to my left side of my stomach and he knew i was injured and he never tried to jump on me. And he always got in my lap everyday to visit with me and take some naps sometimes too. Now he seldom gets up here in my recliner with me unless i tell him to come on up it's ok. He still feels uneased about it and i can tell he feels uncomfortable being there so i let him get down. Well good luck and i'm always available for any questions of this procedure as i have been through it.

 

thank you for your help...about the dig too, I guess, my mind worries about everything... You are right, she will know he has an injury, and will act different then she did...we are trying to do all of the unfinished projects know, before he has surgery.. Or I am anyway...one always puts things off, thinking we have all the time in the world.... Surgery, we see surgeon on Thursday, thank you I will mention it... Pneumonia? I know it is hard to take deep breaths after surgery.... My husband has one lung filled with grandulomas, not mets, at this time, they never evaluated those grandulomas in his lungs? So I fear him have pneumonia after surgery... So you had been in the hospital two weeks? I have so many questions regarding hospital stay, had you been in ICU most of the time? Was your pain controlled in hospital? How did you feel once you returned home? I am sorry about the recent finding in your liver? The intestine attached, do you know what that surgery is called? I have not read that anyplace? I don't understand if they remove esopagus, why can't they just add a fake tube in that area, and not stretch the stomach? It seems so radical? Good luck and many prayer your way...

About the surgery sorry spell check said "dig" ???