My surgeon was Dr. Mark Talamonti at Evanston Northwestern Healthcare. I was very happy with him--he's very direct, tells you like it is, but will answer all questions patiently. I feel fortunate to have gotten him as he's highly regarded around here and the nation for work with pancreatic cancer.
They found my cancer by accident and I was fortunate to have gotten worked up the chain quickly to good doctors. Everything happened so fast. I thought I got food poisoning on a trip to Denver and was sick for weeks after. Superbowl Sunday I felt great and went to a place for ribs--enough to bring some home for the game. I felt fine going to bed but at 2 a.m. I had a severe pacreatitis attack. I thought it was bad gas or the food poisoning acting up again. After two more attacks that night I finally went to an emergency room. All my urine was coke colored and the x-ray of my abdomen looked peculiar to the doctor. So they did an ultrasound thinking I had a gall bladder problem.
In doing that they saw something and ordered a CT scan. It was then that they told me I had a mass on the head of my pancreas. I spent two days in the hospital letting my insides calm down. Then I was sent to a Dr. Alassadi at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. He did an ECRP with fine needle aspiration biopsy and confirmed it was cancer on the pancreas. He referred me to Dr. Talamonti. I had my Whipple February 25th.
It turned out to be a rough ride given the delayed gastric emptying complication but overall I am healing well. I get real sore by evenings but am eating well, with enzymes, and am getting back to work, etc. I have to make myself slow down and pace myself--the Whipple is no easy thing to recover from. But I do think having it done by a surgeon who does a lot of them has been huge in how fast my body is recovering.
The only thing I didn't get much of was advice on next steps. He's strictly a surgical oncologist. His job is to get you to the next treatment phase.
I will check out the other message boards--thanks.
As for chemo and radiation one doctor I saw recommended against radiation because the tumor was removed. I have a second opinion coming up next week at Northwestern Memorial. So I am looking for anything to help me understand and make a decision.
Thanks,
Stephen